As the three friends rode down the rails, the locomotive poured on the coals and really picked up speed. Before these friends knew it, they were doing about forty miles per hour. They had left the city. Darkness was setting in out in the boondocks. Soon these three friends were cold, lost, and scared.

After half an hour or so, they decided that they had to do something. So in perfect Butch Cassidy fashion, they lined up in the door of the boxcar in which they were riding--and they bailed out. It was a rough tumble down into some bushes (several of which were blackberry vines), but they were okay. The problem was, they were terribly lost. It was pitch dark.

Eventually, one of them looked off in the distance and saw a faint glow. It looked like there was a small town out there. The three humiliated joyriders began walking through the woods. With each increment they traveled the light became brighter and more distinct. There was a town out there! Soon the light became intense enough to illuminate their path. They wound up at a roadside restaurant and called for help.

These friends got home safely because they saw a distant light and walked in its glow. It became an overwhelming beacon that led them to where they needed to go.

I don't believe that I am being overly dramatic when I say there are people in this world who are lost in darkness and they're looking for a light--any light--to lead them to spiritual, emotional and mental safety. How about your light? Is it shining? Could they find their way home because of you? You and I are the light of the world. We have a responsibility for the world. We have what the world desperately needs. We are not the source of the light but merely reflectors--reflectors of the true light of Jesus Christ.

Ron Newhouse