“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house” — Matthew 5:14-15, NRSV.

There is a story of a proud grandfather taking his 5- year-old grandson out for walks. It was always a special time for both of them.

Grandfather was a retired school teacher and always found ways to enlighten the youngster about life. It happened on one of their walks that the youngster noticed some funny-looking trees.

There were many of them growing in a long line and his curiosity led him to inquire about the trees.

The grandfather smiled and began to teach his favorite student all about how electrical power arrived at their house. This lesson was important to this youngster, for he was still occasionally bothered by darkness.

Grandfather explained that the power which runs the lights of the house came through the wires carried by the poles.

And he assured his little student that the poles supporting the wires which carried the power to their house were very strong and firmly planted in the ground.

And if something happened which broke a pole or a wire, there would be someone sent immediately to repair the break and reestablish the flow of the power.

This news was very comforting to the boy. He understood these peculiar trees were important to him.

Then he asked his grandfather if the poles and the power lines went all over the world.

“No,” the old man said. “There are many places where there are neither poles nor power lines.”

The youngster thought for a minute and then asked, “What happens to the people in those places?”

“I guess they just do not have lights, and they will not until there are enough poles and wire to bring the power to them.”

Realizing how this would affect his life, the young boy sadly made the quite accurate observation, “Then I guess the children live in the dark, don’t they?”

Now I have never been one to love the power poles that carry electricity across the countryside. But I surely do enjoy all the benefits of being a recipient of that product!

And when I stop and think about it, I begin to see a vision of the church and a challenge for all believers in this geographical area, as well as around the world.

Jesus is the Light. God has chosen to use us as the means to bring the Light to all parts of the world.

In order for the children in the far (or near) reaches of the world to have Light, we must have many poles and lots of wire.

God has plenty of power to bring the Light throughout the world, but the church’s task is to provide the wire and find the poles to support it.

And the poles will not stand on their own; they must be firmly supported by lots of good, solid ground and adequate guy wires.

True, this network of funny looking trees may not be pretty, but that grid of poles and wires is important to those who are the recipients of the power carried by the grid.

And the appreciation of those funny-looking trees comes not from those who are so accustomed to their presence as the ones who now have access to power never before known.

And a relatively recent set of events reminds me also of another aspect. Every summer, the power grids of the nation are stretched to their limit because of heavy consumption of the energy supplied to homes and businesses.

If power requirements in one area of the country begin to exceed the local area’s ability to supply suffi cient power, other areas begin to provide a portion of the extra power needed.

They work together through a complex network of the power grid. Thus, for all the boys and girls around the world to receive the Light they need, we may all be called to work together.

If I cannot be a wire carrying the power, or even a pole stationed somewhere around the world, I surely can be a part of the good, solid ground which supports the poles and the wires as they carry the Light all across the face of God’s creation.

So the next time I see one of those funny-looking trees, I will ask myself what I am doing to help bring the Light to those who live in the darkness.

I appreciate receiving the Light and not living in darkness, and I want to be a part of the grid that brings the Light to children living in darkness somewhere in God’s beautiful world. Don’t you?

Prather is pastor of Lake Palestine United Methodist Church.