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Since we’re in the season of using pumpkins for food and decorations, I thought I’d point out how we Christians are somewhat like those pumpkins. First, God has to pick us from the “pumpkin patches” of our lives, clean us up, and then scoop out all the yucky stuff inside. We covered how the seeds that grow inside of us have to be truly cleaned out.
One of the favorite things to do with pumpkins at this harvest time is to make jack-o-lanterns. After scooping out all the yucky stuff from inside, then we carve a smiling face and put a candle inside to light it up. And the process is similar with how God changes us when we allow him to clean out all the yucky stuff inside.
He carves a new smiling face and puts his light inside of us to shine for all the world to see.
One of my favorite passages is Psalm 40:2-3: He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. With a new song to sing and a smile on your face, you truly become a light in your world, as Jesus intended when he said: You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden (Matthew 5:14).
Proverbs 15:13 says, A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but heartache crushes the spirit. And again in verse 30: Light in a messenger’s eyes brings joy to the heart, and good news gives health to the bones.
Do you carry a cheerful look and a happy face into your world each day? I’m not talking about a phony smile or pretending that everything is right. But I am talking about allowing God’s light inside of you to shine through you regardless of the circumstances. Anyone can look cheerful when everything is going right, but when life is tough, that’s when the smiling face really makes a difference.
Did you know that when you smile, you get those endorphins going inside you and that can actually change the way you feel. And sometimes the smile comes first and the joy comes later, so, it’s a very good discipline to just remember to smile more and let the light of Christ shine through you.