Glitter or Glow?

One word that you won’t find in the Bible is glitter.  Moses didn’t glitter as he came down the mountain with God’s commands.  Mary didn’t glitter after the angel Gabriel announced to her that she was to be the bearer of the Messiah.  Paul, on the way to Damascus, to persecute disciples, didn’t glitter after being blinded by the light of Christ.

They all glowed as they reflected the all-piercing light of God present before and within them.  Someone once said to me, “I’ve given up on being happy in this life.  I’ve decided that I’m going to be cheerful instead.”  That person chose glitter over glow.  Glitter in life brings attention to self.  Glow helps one catch a glimpse of the presence of God.

Movie stars and media celebrities love glitter.  They want us to notice them and to focus on them, even if only for a moment.  Those who glow really don’t want you to notice them at all.  They want you to share in the light of Christ that shines in them and moves through them.  They want to share the joy and peace that is Christ.

A friend and highly respected jeweler once showed me the difference between glitter and glow in a diamond ring.   He showed me two rings.  One looked splashy and flashy; the other looked calm and deep.  He said, “Some people go for the diamond that calls attention to them,” he said.  “Others want the diamond that glows and draws people in.” 

There are, of course, those who go one step further and purchase a ring with a stone that looks like a diamond.  They want the glitter, but not the cost.  The technical term is a “simulated diamond.”  One man got the right message but used the wrong word.  “That’s a stimulated diamond!”  The glitter must have gone to his head.

Each of us is a precious stone being cut and shaped by God.  We have much value.  In life, we are not called to glitter for God.  We are meant to glow for God.  We are not meant to settle merely for cheer, but for joy.  That is the promise—and call—of the Christian life.