Where's the Flashlight?
Imagine yourself descending into a dark, subterranean cellar. The damp seems cool against your face as you grope your way down. The concrete floor feels unforgiving beneath your wary tread. Thump! Your foot strikes a friable brick wall. A turn in the stairs has taken you by surprise. With dread you reach the bottom, and as you feel your way around the wall you touch something setting on a ledge. What is this? A flashlight! Instantly, the previously sepulchral and foreboding cellar is flooded with a bright light as you flip the switch. Now you can see your way clearly and advance without fear of falling.
This cellar is the dark and sinful world. While we live here we need a light to dispel the darkness, but what is that light? Proverbs 29:18 says, "Where there is no vision, the people perish; but where he that keepeth the law, happy is he". The light that we now have is the hope and vision given us by Jesus Christ through the Bible. The light eliminates our uncertainty and clarifies the vision that we must have in order to become a righteous generation.
So what is God’s vision for our generation? First, God wants us to be a pure and righteous people. Of every generation he requires this. We all want to accomplish the Master’s highest for our lives. In order to do this, we must first cleanse our lives from transgressions by repentance; then he can use us for his most noble purposes. II Timothy 2:20 compares us to the various vessels in a home. There is garbage pail used for an ignoble purpose. There are also the priceless china dishes. Only the beautiful and costly dishes are ever used for guests. In the same way our master uses only his pure and holy vessels to do his highest work. If you shun the evil desires of youth embracing righteousness and guarding your thoughts, you can present yourself to God, as one approved, a workman who has no need to be ashamed.
Second, he wants us to tell not only our own children but also the entire world, Jews and Gentiles alike, about his plan for salvation and eternal life (Eph 3:9-11). From the American businessman to the Indonesian headhunter, God loves all people equally. When this is done, when everyone has heard the gospel, then Christ will return. This is our highest mission. He has given us mouths to proclaim him, feet to go and tell about him, hands to write about him, lives to spend for him, and eyes to finally see him.
This is God’s vision for our generation, that we would be pure, that we would love him, and that we would pass that love onto our children and to the entire world. If you want to find what you are looking for and not fall flat on your face, then next time remember your flashlight when you go into the basement!
CM
I received honorable mention for this piece.
Hiking on Masaya Volcano in Nicaragua. 
