LifeLink Devotions

Tuesday, May 2, 2023

It was an idea we found on Pinterest. Okay, I’ve just lost all the male readers. Stick with me if you can.

It was nearing the time that the grandkid’s parents would be returning home, and they wanted to surprise them. So off to the dollar store we went to buy plastic tablecloths and balloons.

First, blow up all the balloons – two packages.

Second, write a greeting on one of the tablecloths.

Third, secure each side of the greeting tablecloth to each wall beside the back door, forming a barricade.

Fourth, secure the second tablecloth in the same manner but 12-14 inches behind the first one towards the inside of the house.

Finally, fill the space between the tablecloths with the balloons.

We had just finished eating supper when we heard the overhead garage door open.

“They’re here!” came the shouts from the kids, who hadn’t seen their parents in nine days. They all took their places in the kitchen, except the youngest, who wanted to hide.

The door slowly open and the kids could hear their mommy and daddy talking and reading the greeting. They could see the bulges of the balloons and wondered out loud what to do. The kids were quiet.

Suddenly hands appeared through the barrier. Unfortunately, they ripped both tablecloths so the balloons came pouring into the kitchen rather than just onto them. That caused a mad scramble for balloons by the kids, ignoring mom and dad. As Denise and I watched it was kind of funny to see the kids more interested in the balloons than the parents they hadn’t seen for days. The youngest one especially took forever to jump into the arms of his mommy. But once they all did, the balloons didn’t matter anymore. They were in the arms of the ones they loved.

This is the image we have in today’s Scripture. Look with special interest at the word “unfolding.”  

Psalm 119:130 “The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.”

This is the only place in the Bible this word is used in this form, and its simple definition is “a doorway.”  But it is so much more than just a doorway, for it also bears the meaning of opening and unfolding. The more the door is opened, the more the light will shine. The more the door is opened, the greater the understanding of the truths of God’s love.

Think back to the balloon story. When the door – the tablecloths – was opened, the simple thrill of balloons appeared and captured the fancy of the kids. But as the doorway of tablecloths opened wider so that the parents could pass through, the greater thrill of relationship was revealed, replacing the simple joy of a toy with the more fulfilling joy of hugs and kisses.

So it is to be with our devotional study of God’s Word. The smallest opening reveals light, but we are not to be content to see only a sliver of the Sonshine. We must press on through the initial joys of the first light of dawn and push open the door wider and wider to reveal the full brightness of the Son’s glory. Let us not be satisfied to see dimly and play only on the floor with balloons but let us unfold the Word of God so that we are lifted up and embraced by the arms of our Father.

Pastor John