Over the years I have installed a lot of light fixtures. Some of the installations have been to replace a light fixture that was broken and leaving people in the dark. Some of the fixtures I have installed were purchased to change the ambiance or look of a room. But here lately I have been installing more efficient fixtures that use LED bulbs and use less power.
I have also repaired many light fixtures as well. In troubleshooting a broken light, sometimes the fixture is bad, the bulb is broken, the light switch is burned out or there is a problem with the circuit breaker or wiring. Nevertheless, the fixture has left us in the dark!
Our body is also a light-fixture. If we energize our body with Christ, it will be like a beacon piercing through the thick darkness, unquenchable. (Mt. 6:22-23) In this world today it so easy to get unplugged or disconnected from the narrow road that energizes our salvation and we then experience a dim or unworkable light. There are some troubleshooting techniques we can use as well to repair our broken spiritual light. But you will need some tools to repair your broken light! To be concise, listen to the words of Fr. Seraphim Rose: “Orthodoxy is life. If we don’t live Orthodoxy, we simply are not Orthodox, no matter what formal beliefs we might hold. (Fr. Seraphim Rose, Living the Orthodox World View -A talk delivered by Hieromonk Seraphim (Rose) at the St. Herman Pilgrimage, August 1982, St. Herman of Alaska Monastery, Platina, California)
There it is! Practice what the Holy Tradition teaches and watch yourself glow! Do not glow from the created light from your smart phone or flat screen but glow from being energized by the Word of God from a light uncreated! Glow from living the commandments! Flip your switch on by saying your prayers, no excuses! Glow from cleaning the dirt and scum off of your dim bulb through repentance and confession. And most of all, receive the Body and Blood of the Great Illuminator, our Lord, Jesus Christ (John 8:12). As Fr. Seraphim Rose says, if you are not doing these things, you are not Orthodox, no excuses!
There is a great cost to being Orthodox, it will cost you your life! By I tell you that it will be the greatest thing you ever do, but it is a life-long commitment! Surrender it all, every day, every hour! Life on Earth will be over for us very soon, don’t delay. What in the world is keeping you away? Hear the words of Saint Theophan the Recluse: “Refuse to listen to the devil when he whispers to you: give me now, and you will give tomorrow to God. No, no! Spend all the hours of your life in a way pleasing to God;” (From Unseen Warfare, St. Theophan the Recluse and St. Nicodemus of the Holy Mountain)
There is still time to repair your light-fixture! You have the tools and know-how available to you. Follow the footsteps of the Saints of the church. If your bulb is not brilliant and flickering light a lightning bug, you are most likely plugged into to the great deceiver. St. Leonid of Optina warns us: “Beware of passionate attachments to the world. Although they deceive you with peace and comfort, they are so fleeting that you do not notice how you are deprived of them, and in their place come sorrow, longing, despondency, and no comfort whatsoever.” (St. Leonid of Optina)
Be about your Fathers’ business and keep your light shining! Glory to Thee who has shown us the Light, Glory to Thee!
