The Parable Of The Candles
There was a blackout one night. When the lights went out, I fumbled to the closet where we keep the candles for nights like this... I lit four of
them. I was turning to leave with the large candle in my hand when I
heard a voice, "Now, hold it right there." "Who said that?" "I did."
The voice was near my hand. "Who are you? What are you?" "I am a
candle." I lifted up the candle to take a closer look. There was a
tiny face in the wax. "Don't take me out of here!" "What?" "I said, don't
take me out of this room." "What do you mean? I have to take you out.
You're a candle. Your job is to give light. It is dark out there."
"But you can't take me out. I'm not ready," the candle explained with pleading eyes. "I need more preparation." I couldn't believe my ears.
"More preparation?" "Yeah, I've decided I need to research this job of light-giving so I won't go out and make a bunch of mistakes. You'd be
surprised how distorted the glow of an untrained candle can be. . . ."
"All right then," I said. "You're not the only candle on the shelf. I'll
blow you out and take others!" But right then I heard other voices,
"We aren't going either!" I turned to the other candles, "You are candles and your job is to light dark places!"
"Well, that may be what you think," said the first one, "You may think we have to go, but I'm
busy... I'm meditating on the importance of light. It's really enlightening."
"And you other two," I asked, "are you going to stay, too?" A short, fat, purple candle with plump cheeks spoke up. "I'm
waiting to get my life together, I'm not stable enough." The last candle
had a female voice, very pleasant to the ear. "I'd like to help," she
explained, "but lighting the darkness is not my gift...I'm a singer. I sing to other candles to encourage them to burn more brightly."
She began a rendition of "This Little Light of Miine." The other three joined
in, filling the closet with singing. I took a step back and considered the
absurdity of it all. Four perfectly healthy candles singing to each other
about light but refusing to come out of the closet. Here is a question for you, when was the last time you shared the gospel
with someone? This world is full of darkness, with many people stumbling around trying
to find their way. You can be a light for them, and believe me, there's a light waiting for you.
It can all happen with something like sharing the
faith, to just a smile across the room, to a quick hello to a forgotten friend. "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hid.
Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a
candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.
unknown
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