Might I suggest that we as Christians are called to be lighthouses too? The light we shine can point the way to safety - the safety that is in Jesus.
But before we get all hyped up thinking that we have to do the rescuing - let's think about what lighthouses are. I'm talking about manned lighthouses here, the kind we grew up thinking about. They are tall buildings, only wide enough for one person to live. They are located on the edge of the most dangerous shoals, constantly in sight of the rocks that easily could sink a ship. And in themselves, there is absolutely no ability to save those ships.
The saving power comes from the light that's inside.
That light is huge. It is much larger than could ever be useful just to light one building. It is in the uppermost place in the lighthouse. It is so powerful that its candle-power fills the compartment it is housed in, and spills out through the windows to the surrounding waves... for miles.
The keeper of the lighthouse has two jobs. The first is to make sure that the light is on at all times, even in good weather. The second is to make sure that the windows where the light shines from are completely transparent at all times, so that the light will travel the absolute farthest that it can when it's needed most.
I don't need to draw a diagram here. Our calling as Christians is to make sure the light is on - to let it shine, in other words, and to make sure that there is nothing that hinders His light from shining its brightest. We take care of our responsibility by keeping ourselves in fit spiritual condition, by staying close to God, making sure that there's nothing between us and Him. That comes from being honest with Him and with ourselves. We can even make mistakes. As long as we don't try to hide them, God can even use our mistakes for His glory.
We leave all the results (those rescued by heeding the light, as well as those who see the light and ignore it - to their own hurt) up to the Light of the world - the presence and power of Jesus shining through our lives. To do this, we don't need to DO anything. We just ARE. We ARE...for Him. Out of that relationship with Him, out of that intimacy with the Almighty, comes an integrity of spirit, an honesty of heart, that is compelling. Truth, transparency, and trust are powerful.
If we could just BE!
BE - live our lives - toward Him. Give His presence, His love, His power, His mercy, the highest place in our lives - and be ourselves (in Him) before a world that's watching. They can tell a fake a mile away. And they won't be able to see even the strongest light that is masked and dirtied up by hypocrisy and pride blocking its path.
We get so distracted by our "doing." There are lots of people out there "doing." That's all the reward they're going to get - individuals who get on TV or who get some other kind of recognition for the good deeds they do. There's not a whole lot of folks out there "being. Being" a prayer to God. Not trundling off on this project or that program, "doing." Doing without being produces only one thing: burnout.
Jesus said that when we (truly) believed in Him, out of our innermost BEING would flow rivers of living water. Rivers of gratitude, of love, of joy, of peace, spilling out of our lives and producing the kind of "doing" that is authentic, based on relationship and not duty.
Let's just be - and let His glorious light shine through...
