The psalmist uses lantern light as a metaphor for the action of God’s word in his life: “Your word is a lantern to my feet and a light upon my path.” Because the world around us is bathed in artificial light 24 hours a day, we can’t begin to appreciate the total darkness of the psalmist’s night. It is hard for us to imagine the comfort, the encouragement that the psalmist knows from being encircled in a pool of light as he carries a lantern on his way. It is from such experience that he perceives the word of the Lord showing him the way through the darkness of life. God’s word is something for him to hold onto, something that can illuminate the temptations and stumbling blocks, the snares and dangers of life before he falls prey to them. It keeps him from going astray, from running into dead ends, from getting lost, so long as he intentionally takes advantage of the lantern light provided by God’s word.

Jesus, on the other hand, in his parable of the sower, uses seeds as the metaphor for the word of God, tiny seeds which have the potential of much fruitfulness. In his parable, he points out a variety of obstacles that can prevent the seed from taking root in our hearts and being productive. Those difficulties are just as common today as they were in Jesus’ day. When we stop and look around us, we can relate to the problems and distractions caused by the greedy birds, the rocky ground, the hot sun, the persistent thorns in our lives. If, however, we take the seeds of the word of God into our hearts and nurture them with time and attention, if we allow the seeds to grow to maturity deep within our hearts, we find ourselves transformed. No longer are we self-absorbed, content to ignore the word of the Lord; rather we find joy and delight sharing the fruit of God’s word with others, lifting the lantern high to give light to those around us whose paths are shrouded in darkness.

Regardless of whether we experience God’s word as seeds within or as lantern light without, it encourages us on our journey home to the heart of God. Let those with ears to hear, listen.