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I was attending an installation service at a nearby congregation. The service started at 4 p.m. I sat in the first pew. The colors of the stained glass windows had faded into gray as the evening advanced. Then the rays of the setting sun burst into the front window opposite where I was seated. The radiance from the light made the colors come alive with brilliance. The light and warmth of colors and sunlight bathed over me. I was overwhelmed by the beauty of the window as it filtered the light of the setting sun. It lasted only about ten minutes. Then the window became dark and dull again as the stained glass reflected little color and conveyed only the gathering darkness of the night. Now I know that every day sometime between 4:30 and 5 p.m. that small window floods with the wonder of color and light. It just so happened on that day at that strange hour we were gathered for worship and were surprised by the grace and beauty of that moment. I was filled in that moment with an incredible joy. It was as if heaven's light had broken through the veil that separates us from God. As I reflected on that moment of light, I wondered how many other places there are that go unnoticed as heaven's light is breaking through. It's not that God does not break through to us in this life, it is rather that we are not in the right place to behold it. But today at 4:30 p.m. I remembered that light was shining into the stillness of that empty, country church and washing the pew where I sat. There is a constancy of God's love that flickers from heaven to earth. By grace, there are moments when we experience the wonder of light shining through windows, of love filing our hearts, of songs lifting us up. I often wonder if these experiences are given to us so that on the days when God seems far away, we can remember those sanctuary places and be drawn back into God's open arms. --H.S. |