Posted on by jwlozano

Turn On the Light

The other day, I was walking along Lake Michigan during a heat advisory. The sun was intense. Even with a hat and sunglasses on, I could feel it beating down on me. Everything around me was bright. The water sparkled, the sky was clear, and there was no escaping the light.

As I walked, a simple illustration came to mind.

Imagine a ceiling fan with four light bulbs. When one bulb burns out, you hardly notice. There are still three working, so the room seems bright enough.

Then another bulb burns out.

Then another.

Before long, you’re down to one bulb, but because the change happened gradually, your eyes have adjusted. The room is much darker than it used to be, but it feels normal because you’ve grown accustomed to it.

Isn’t that how life works sometimes?

We get used to things that were never meant to be normal.

We get used to financial stress.

We get used to unhealthy habits.

We get used to clutter, chaos, and dysfunction.

We get used to spiritual dryness.

Little by little, our eyes adjust.

Then one day we find ourselves feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or frustrated, wondering how we got there.

The answer may be simpler than we think.

We need light.

One of the first things God did in creation was speak light into darkness:

“And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” (Genesis 1:3)

I’ve always found that interesting. Before God brought order, He brought light.

You cannot create order in darkness.

Whether it’s our finances, our relationships, our health, or our spiritual lives, we have to be willing to see clearly before we can move forward. Yet so often we want God to fix things without first allowing Him to reveal what needs attention.

The beautiful thing is that God’s light is not meant to shame us. It is meant to help us.

When God shines His light on an area of our lives, He is not exposing us to condemn us. He is helping us see clearly so that healing, growth, and change can begin.

Maybe the question today isn’t, “What needs to change?”

Maybe the better question is, “Where do I need to turn on the light?”

What area of your life have you become so accustomed to that you no longer recognize the dysfunction?

Where have your eyes adjusted to the darkness?

Because once the light comes on, clarity follows. And when clarity comes, we can begin creating order.

Sometimes the most important step forward is not doing more.

It’s simply turning on the light.

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Posted on by jwlozano

A Different Kind of Clean

I was reading Matthew 23, where Jesus is speaking to the religious leaders, the Pharisees and others who were interpreting the law of Moses. He doesn’t hold back. He calls out how everything they do is for show, how they elevate themselves above others, and then He reminds them of what really matters.

“The greatest among you must be a servant.” (Matthew 23:11)

“Those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (Matthew 23:12)

He goes on to say that while they are careful to follow the law, they are neglecting what matters most: “justice, mercy, and faith.” (Matthew 23:23)

But what really stood out to me was this:

“You are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy, full of greed and self-indulgence… First wash the inside of the cup and the dish, and then the outside will become clean too.”

Matthew 23:25–26

“Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness.” (Matthew 23:28)

As I read this, it made me think about something very practical. I am in a season of spring cleaning right now, going room by room, getting rid of things that no longer serve us, donating what I can, throwing things away, and reorganizing what’s left.

And it hit me, how easy it is to do that in our homes, but not in our hearts.

It is easy to let things build up inside. Pride, greed, bitterness. Just like clutter in a room, those things do not just disappear. They sit there until we deal with them.

So while I am spring cleaning my home, I am also asking God to help me spring clean my heart.

“Search me, O God, and know my heart… See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalm 139:23–24)

We live in a culture that puts so much emphasis on the outside. Looking put together. Wearing the right things. Presenting ourselves well. And while those things are not wrong, they can easily become the focus.

But God looks deeper.

“People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)

And the truth is, when we look honestly at our hearts, we need Him.

“The heart is deceitful above all things.” (Jeremiah 17:9)

“All our righteous acts are like filthy rags.” (Isaiah 64:6)

We cannot clean our hearts on our own. Real cleansing only comes through Jesus and the work of the Holy Spirit in us.

So this has become my prayer in this season: that I would not just focus on the outside, but that I would take time to sit before God with an open heart, willing to receive His correction and His refining.

To let Him deal with what is inside first.

Because when He cleans the inside, the outside follows.