by Marti Fischer

Jesus does not whisper this truth. He states it plainly:

You are the light of the world.

Not you might be, not you will be someday, not you are when conditions are ideal…

You are.

Which raises a quiet but unsettling question: If the light is already in us… why do we spend so much time hiding?

The Walls We Build

We tell ourselves we are being wise. Or careful. Or respectful. Or private. But the walls we live behind are not made of humility — they are made of fear.

Fear of being misunderstood.
Fear of rejection.
Fear of sounding foolish.
Fear of inconvenience.
Fear of standing out.
Fear of being ridiculed

So we keep our faith tidy. Contained. Well-behaved.

We let our heads talk us out of what our hearts know to be true. The heart — where conviction lives, where love compels, where faith burns — is silenced by a head that prefers safety over risk.

A Lamp Under a Bowl

But who lights a lamp and then hides it? Yet spiritually, we do it all the time.

We light the lamp — then tuck it away behind politeness — behind busyness — behind a carefully curated version of ourselves.

We become experts at believing without being seen. But light is not meant to be possessed. It is meant to shine.

From Darkness to Light—Now Walk

Paul doesn’t say, believe the light. He doesn’t even say, be the light. He says, you are the light. (Ephesians 5:8) Therefore, walk as children of light.

Light that never moves doesn’t illuminate much. Light that stays hidden changes nothing. Faith was never meant to remain internally. It was meant to be embodied. Visible… Relational… Costly.

So How Do We Come Out from Behind Ourselves?

Not by shouting.
Not by performance.
Not by winning arguments.

We come out from behind ourselves when we step out into the light and walk alongside others. That’s when truth moves from belief to action.

Here is what that looks like—simply, quietly, powerfully:

• We choose presence over distance.
  We step into people’s lives instead of observing them from afar.

• We risk being known.
  We speak honestly about who we are, what we believe, what we struggle with, and why hope still holds us.

• We practice visible love
  Not for applause—but so others might glimpse the Father through ordinary acts of kindness.

• We stop waiting for “the right moment.”
  Light doesn’t wait for permission. It shines.

• We trust God with the outcome.
  Our responsibility is obedience, not results.

This is not about hiding less — it is about coming out into the open and being vulnerable.

A City on a Hill

A city on a hill doesn’t announce itself. It doesn’t argue its position. It simply cannot be ignored. That is the kind of life Jesus envisions — a life so anchored in truth, so animated by love, so engaged with the world, that hiding is no longer possible. Not because we are bold — but because the light insists on shining.

A Closing Question Worth Living With

If we truly are the light of the world…

• Who is still sitting in the dark because we stayed behind our walls?
• What might change if we came out in the open and let our light shine—not someday—but now?

The call has never been to withdraw. The call has always been to move out — out from behind ourselves, into the lives God has placed right in front of us and let the light do what light has always done…

Shine.

Shine
Make ‘em wonder what you’ve got
Make ‘em wish that they were not
On the outside lookin’ bored

Shine
Let it shine before all men
Let ’em see good works and then
Let ’em glorify the Lord
             – From the song, “Shine” by the Newsboys