Aging Spiritually: God is Life, Light, and Love
“In him was life, and the life was the light of all people.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.”
—
Life, Light, and Love
This week begins the season of Lent, an important season to heal our understandings and images of God and restore a healthy relationship with God. Who is God to you?
There are three biblical images of God that shape my understanding of and relationship with God; life, light, and love. Instead of thinking of Lent as a time of penitential sacrifice for a punitive God, can we practice Lent as a season of drawing near to God who is life, light, and love?
God is life. God is life, abundant and eternal. We are created by God in the image and likeness of God (Gen. 1:26-27), whose breath of life was given to us (Gen. 2:7). In biblical Greek, the word for spiritual life is zoe, life that is both eternal and abundant (Jn. 3:16, 10:10). This spirit-filled life promised by Jesus begins now and continues eternally.
What prevents you from knowing this God of life? What are habits and distractions that interfere in your relationship with the God of life? How can you let go of these distractions and feel the life-giving breath of God, filling your spirit with zoe life that is abundant and eternal?
God is light. The life of God is light for all people, light which shines in our darkness and is never dimmed (Jn. 1:4-5). In God, there is no darkness at all (1 Jn. 1:5).
Light enables us to see how to live our lives. Darkness is a powerful metaphor of our doubts and fears, our sins and sorrows. Light shines in the darkness of our lives, dispelling darkness with the light of life which comes from Jesus, the light of the world (Jn. 8:12). Just as you receive life breathed upon you, you also receive light shining into the darkness of life.
God is love. The image of God as love can be both universal and individual in our experience. We read in 1 John 4:16, “God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them.” When we live within love we are living within God and God is living within us.
Living in this love is how we are able to love one another, not only our family and friends, but even our enemies. God’s love is revealed and experienced through us (1 Jn. 4:12). We love others without fear through the love of God, “for fear has to do with punishment” (1 Jn. 4:18). We love one another because we have experienced this love in our own lives (1 Jn. 4:19).
God is life, light, and love. We receive the breath of life upon us. Light shines in the darkness of our lives. We can love without fear because we live within the love which is God. In this season of Lent, make your spiritual practice a time to renew your relationship with the Source of all life, light, and love.
Practice
In Genesis 2:7 humanity received life by the breath of God. Each time you breath, you are repeating that basic act of creation, taking in life given by God, inviting God’s presence. Our practice this week is a breath prayer, a prayer of few words, repeated with each breath. Inhale each breath slowly and deeply, exhale slowly and gently.
As you inhale, silently pray, “You are life.” As you exhale, silently pray, “Abide in me.” On your next breath, silently pray, “You are light,” and “Abide in me.” On your third breath, silently pray, “You are love,” and “Abide in me.” On your fourth breath, simply rest in the presence of God. Allow the God of life, light, and love to fill your spirit.
Greg Smith
Legacy Ministry for Older Adults