Jesus and The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse

 

Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, NC photo by pixabay

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

~Mark 16:15 KJV

We're planning our vacation to the Outer Banks of NC this summer so I've been doing a little research on the lighthouses we want to visit. Cape Hatteras is probably the most famous so that's the one I want to share about today. 

The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse has been built in a variety of ways. First, it was short and made of sandstone. It wasn't very visible to mariners. Later in the 1800's it was built on a floating foundation, built much taller, equipped with a Fresnel lens, and painted a distinguishable color. I'd like to examine some of these important features. 

The Sandstone - As we mentioned, the sandstone lighthouse was too short and too hard for mariners to see. It couldn't do the job. 

• When God commanded that sacrifices be made, they were only to be representations of the true sacrifice. They were simple altars made of stones. Even when the brass altar of the tabernacle was constructed it was still a symbol of the true sacrifice to come.

The Floating Foundation - When the foundation for the new construction of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse was made in the 1800s the water table was only four feet down. Construction workers had to make a floating foundation by laying wood crossways below the water table. Then they placed granite on top of the wood to build the new lighthouse. 

• Jesus, the Rock of our salvation was placed upon a wooden cross. 

The Color and the Light - The Lighthouse Board regulated the color and the light patterns of each lighthouse so mariners could distinguish by day and by night where they were located. The area off the coast of North Carolina is known as the Graveyard of the Atlantic. The lighthouse needed to be tall enough to see and the pattern of the light flashes at night needed to reach out far into the ocean so mariners knew how close they were to the rocky coast. The intersection of the ocean currents caused many ships to go down, casting the ships against the coast. Having the lighthouse to guide the way saved many ships and lives. 

• The Israelites were guided in the wilderness with a cloud by day and a fire by night. It guided them through a wilderness they had not traveled before. 

The Fresnel Lens - A Fresnel Lens is made up of triangular prisms of glass. This helps the light to go farther. Lighthouse lights are white lights because they go farther than colored lights. There were 1000 triangles in the Lens made for the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. 

• Jesus is the Rock of our foundation. He is the Light of the world.  He is also our Savior on which the church is built. But, the members of the church are the ones commanded to take the gospel to the world. We are to reflect the Light in all we do. There is a world full of shipwrecked people out there who need the light of Jesus to safely guide them to salvation. 

Be the Light. 

Father, help us be aware of how we reflect your Light to others. In Jesus's name. Amen.

Hey Kids:

Are you going somewhere for a vacation? 

Have you researched the area, the possibilities?

How will your travels help you reflect the light of Jesus to others? 

Staying home this summer? 

There is always an adventure in our backyards. 

Kids' magazines are always looking for drawings and writings by kids! 

What will you discover this summer that you can share with other kids? 

How will you reflect the light of Jesus? 

Hard Choices

Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. Isaiah 41:10

Yesterday was the Sanctity of Human Life Sunday. Sometimes choices are hard. Sometimes we make the wrong choice. Sometimes we don't fully understand the choice until it's too late to change the choice. But God is the Great Forgiver and Lover of our souls. 

When I began to keep chickens, I wanted to raise my own flock. I didn't know how to keep my hens from laying with my setting hen. I hated wasting eggs, so I attempted to sort them without candling them (looking inside with a light through the shell.) One day I cracked an egg into a bowl and there lay a yolk with a few arteries stretching across it with a tiny heart beating.

Oh no. What had I done? I couldn't put it back in the shell. I couldn't keep it warm, and I couldn't throw it in the trash. It was alive and dying before my eyes. Over the next 20 minutes, I watched the heartbeat slow as the egg cooled down to room temperature. I tried to walk away but I always returned to check on it, wishing it to live, knowing it would die. I had made the wrong choice. Finally, the little heart no longer beat. I slid it into the trash, my heart broken.

Jochebed (Exodus 6:20) faced a much harder choice. She conceived a child during the reign of a Pharoah that demanded all Hebrew baby boys be thrown into the river. What if she and Amram disobeyed? Could this child cost her her life? Could it cost Amram's life, the life of her other children as well? It was a hard choice to hide her newborn son but faith in the all powerful, all knowing God gave her the strength to hide him three months. 

When things became hopeless she placed him in a basket in the very river that should have been his death. She couldn't watch so she asked her daughter. Hidden in the reeds, Miriam watched. The daughter of Pharoah came with her maids to bathe. Seeing the basket she sent one of her maids to retrieve it. There she found a crying babe. 

The baby's sister stepped out of hiding and offered to find a nursemaid for the child. Jochebed's baby went home to his mom. 

We are sometimes faced with hard choices. We need to "candle" our choices. Hold them up to the Light. The right choice is often the hardest. 

Please - Choose Life.

Hard Choices

Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. Isaiah 41:10





When I began to keep chickens, I wanted to raise my own flock. I didn't know how to keep my hens from laying with my setting hen. I hated wasting eggs, so I attempted to sort them without candling them (looking inside with a light through the shell.) One day I cracked an egg into a bowl and there lay a yolk with a few arteries stretching across it with a tiny heart beating.

Oh no. What had I done? I couldn't put it back in the shell. I couldn't keep it warm, and I couldn't throw it in the trash. It was alive and dying before my eyes. Over the next 20 minutes, I watched the heartbeat slow as the egg cooled down to room temperature. I tried to walk away but I always returned to check on it, wishing it to live, knowing it would die. I had made the wrong choice. Finally, the little heart no longer beat. I slid it into the trash, my heart broken.

Jochebed (Exodus 6:20) faced a much harder choice. She conceived a child during the reign of a Pharoah that demanded all Hebrew baby boys be thrown into the river. What if she and Amram disobeyed? Could this child cost her her life? Could it cost Amram's life, the life of her other children as well? It was a hard choice to hide her newborn son but faith in the all powerful, all knowing God gave her the strength to hide him three months. 

When things became hopeless she placed him in a basket in the very river that should have been his death. She couldn't watch so she asked her daughter. Hidden in the reeds, Miriam watched. The daughter of Pharoah came with her maids to bathe. Seeing the basket she sent one of her maids to retrieve it. There she found a crying babe. 

The baby's sister stepped out of hiding and offered to find a nursemaid for the child. Jochebed's baby went home to his mom. 

We are sometimes faced with hard choices. We need to "candle" our choices. Hold them up to the Light. The right choice is often the hardest. 

Please - Choose Life.

Hey Kids:

We are faced with choices every day. Choices to be kind, honest, brave, truthful. 

Have you thought of keeping a journal? 

Keeping a journal helps us reflect on the choices we make and how the Lord gives us the strength to make the right ones. 

Even when we can't write a lot of words, pictures still tell great stories. 

What will your story look like today?

Blessings,

Gail

The Light

Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: 

he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. John 8:12

The icicles hanging from sheds and barns and houses brought opportunities to see prisms of light against snow covered ground. The light shining through made everything a little brighter. The rainbows called attention to the light though they were made up of all the colors.

Our lives are like those multi-faceted icicles. Each moment of each day gives us an opportunity  to let the Light of Jesus shine through us. Our days may move from one activity to another. We may organize our days with multi-colored highlighters. Just as there is no black in a rainbow, there should be no moments of darkness in our lives; no anger, no hate, no backbiting. 

The sparkle in the icicle prisms sometimes causes a blinding twinkle, so our lives should be so full of the Light that it overwhelms the darkness around us.

Lord, this year, may I be Your light in a dark world. 

Hey Kids:

Jesus is the Light of the world. 

In the cold clear days of winter, look for ways to see the sun's light reflected in creation.

Take a moment to examine an icicle.

When you hold it in your hand, no light escapes. It's surrounded by darkness. 

The heat from your hand will cause the icicle to melt away. 

When we allow the darkness of the world to surround us in sadness and hate and anger, we have a more difficult time letting Christ's light shine through us. 

The darkness of the world will melt away our joy. 

This year, be the light in our dark world.

Blessings for a Happy New Year,

Gail