Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12 ESV)

If Jesus were to be physically present with us, how confident would we be having the Son of God right by our side? Would we be filled with excitement and adventure? Who will benefit from his next miracle? And who will receive that long awaited answer to prayer? Who will be the next fortunate soul that gets healed from a lifetime of suffering?

Maybe our prayer can just be one simple question: Jesus, what are you going to do today? When we are walking with him, there is a wonderful sense that everything will be okay…actually way more than okay. We don’t have to meander in darkness and be burdened with sullen thoughts and heavy hearts. We can start our day in anticipation that Jesus is going to do something spectacular. In fact, we should expect it! He isn’t a “power of positive thinking” gimmick. He is God and he can fix anything!

On most days he gives me heavy doses of inspiration. And on other days he redirects my thinking when I am perturbed and tired. Could it be that these feelings were designed to give me a greater appreciation for God and the prospect of eternal life? Just last night, I dreamed about the relief I would feel when I set foot into that heavenly place prepared for me. There would be no more sorrows or problems to work through. All would be peaceful and perfect, and God will occupy me (and you) with his infinite goodness.

For now, we just need to follow the Light so that we stay out of the darkness. We are not of this world, but we still have to live in it. There will be days when we are drudging through with heavy feet, and other days when we feel like champions ready for another conquest. Regardless of how we feel from day to day, we can always rest our hope on Jesus and be reminded of his divine identity every now and then:

Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” And Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me” (Matthew 11:2-6 ESV).