Truth be told, there are some portions of Scriptures . . . could be a chapter, could be a verse or two, could be just a phrase . . . that never fail to ignite something within me. They are like the best of friends . . . you may not have seen them for some time, but when you get together the connection is immediate . . . you pick up just where you left off . . . the flame’s still burning. I met up with such an “old friend” this morning . . .

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” (James 1:17 ESV)

Ba-bam! I read that and I can’t quite express what I feel. It’s one of those foundational statements . . . it’s bedrock . . . it’s an anchor . . . I sense that if I get this . . . if I really believe it . . . then it’s going to have an impact on how I think about life and how I try to do life.

At it’s core is “the Father of lights.” I love that name for God! He is the Source . . . He is the Creator . . . of ALL light. He made the sun, moon, and stars . . . He is the Father of the heavenly lights. He too is the Author of spiritual light . . . in Him is no darkness (1John 1:5) . . . and He has called me out of spiritual darkness and into “His marvelous light” (1Peter. 2:9) . . . and allows me to experience and grow in intimate fellowship with Him and with His people . . . as He teaches me and leads me to walk in light (1John 1:6-7). And I’m reminded to that He is the light of heaven itself . . . that in that glorious city there will be no need for a sun or a moon, “for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is the light” (Rev. 21:23).

O, blessed Father of lights! You who dwell in unapproachable light (1Tim. 6:16) . . . You are the Source of all my light!

And it is light without changing or shifting. I don’t rotate away from it, as the earth does the sun. I can’t be hidden from it, as it moves behind a barrier which casts a shadow. Sure, I can try and walk away from it . . . try and hide from it . . . turn my back on it . . . but as for the Source, as for the Light itself, there is no variation . . . no shadow due to changing. My God is immutable . . . how I love that word, too. No variableness with my God . . . He is the same yesterday, today, and forever . . . not that He might be presumed upon . . . but, oh saint, that He can be counted on. He is the Source of unchanging light!

But what is light, unless it is emitted? What is illumination if it is not imparted? But my God is an “emitter” . . . my God is an “imparter” . . . my God is the Giver of every good gift. He is the Give of that which sustains my daily needs . . . of that which is “above and beyond” my needs and is entrusted to my stewardship . . . of that which transcends the material and strengthens the inner man . . . of that which is empowered by the Spirit to be used for the edification of the body of Christ . . . of that which defines who I am as a “new creation in Christ.” Every good gift . . . every perfect present . . . all of it . . . ALL OF IT . . . graced from above . . . given by the Father of lights. Do I hear an “amen” for that?

This morning I was also reading in Ecclesiastes 2. Brother! What a contrast! Solomon’s so bummed by the futility of life. How come? At least part of it is that he was focused on what he owned . . . what he had accomplished . . . what he had built. It’s all “I did this . . . I did that . . . I earned this . . . I made that . . . I became wise . . . blah, blah, blah.” And, as he approached death, he asks, “For what? For someone else who’s not as wise as me to enjoy or claim for his own?” No context . . . no “from above” view . . . no “I’m a receiver” of gifts . . . no immutable Father of lights as the gracer of all good things. Yup . . . vanity.

But such is not the case for the child of God who looks up rather than looks around . . . who realizes there is nothing they have — from shoes on their feet to salvation for their souls — that has not been graciously gifted to them from above . . . from the unchanging God of eternity . . . from the Father of lights! Did I mention, I love that name?