Lamps and Lights

Apparently, I am supposed to learn something about lamps, lights, and myself.  . 

       As the apartment came together, one significant thing was missing – lamps.  Oh, the overhead lights provided light, the ambience was nonexistent.  An old office light on a TV table provided sufficient illumination for bedtime reading, but that look was not in the decorating scheme.   When the new nightstand arrived, the light looked…ridiculous.  The lamp from my old bedroom worked, but it got lost on the rather large nightstand purchased with the idea of additional storage as well as its primary function.   The living room gradually acquired sofa and chairs, entertainment center, end table and a bookcase but no light other than with the ceiling fan.  The situation became desperate.  The search for the perfect lamps was not going well.  Oh, not that beautiful lamps were unavailable, but at some point, cost does become a factor. Thoughts of using old lamps surfaced, but their size, shape, color and style just didn’t cut it.  Thus, the day came when something had to happen to bring light.  The answer, not high class, but sufficient, was Target and Costco. 

       Of course, when you buy at those establishments, the lamp comes in a box and needs to be assembled.  The torchiere style with reading lamp from Target was first.  Cautiously removing all parts from the well engineered packaging, I carefully and tightly screwed all the sections together, adding the glass pieces with great care.  After sliding the sofa away from the wall, I plugged it in and turned the switch.  Nothing.  Moving the plug to the other outlet accomplished – nothing .  One of the switches in the living room appears to have no purpose, but I thought perhaps it controlled the outlet, but trying every combination resulted in – nothing.   The next series of possible solutions involved light bulbs and testing them in other lamps in the outlets, and once again the outcome was – nothing.  Clearly the light was defective, and I was not happy.  Less than charitable thoughts led me to the conclusion that Target would get the assembled light back.  Packing all of it back in the foam and cardboard just was not going to happen, but since it was well past Target’s closing time, that would wait until the next morning.

       Desiring some kind of success in the lighting department, I decided to see how complicated the assembly of the table lamp for the bedroom would be.  Thankfully, it was just adding the harp and shade.  Even the light bulb was included.  As I set the lamp on the nightstand, plugged it in and turned the switch – light.  One out of two is still only 50, but I could read and then rest.

       Before heading out to Target the next morning, I just walked over and turned the switch on the lamp in the corner.  First the reading light came on, then with another twist the upper lamp alone, and the third click brought both to light..  My mind jumped to “a miracle”, and it was sort of one – though the lamp did not get changed.  The miracle was that I turned the switch in the right direction.  Undoubtedly, multiple lessons could be learned from this, but in the same week a different kind of lamp/light lesson hit home.

       In the Bible study I am doing here in Georgia, we are studying  Psalm 119.  Verse 105 is pretty famous, “Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”  Between a sermon reference to the passage earlier in the summer, and the deeper study we are doing, some new insights are coming.  In the past, people have pointed out that the kind of lamps, lanterns or torches a nighttime traveler in that era would have had to light a path would have been small.  Probably those lights would have shined only far enough to see the next step.  But the Psalmist says, it is also a light to the path, which seems to imply more than just one step.  This Psalm is all about God’s word, the commandments, precepts, laws, and ordinances God gave to the Israelites and the writer’s love for them.  As I reflected on this, it seemed to me that the more the Psalmist immersed himself in the Words Moses wrote and the ones he himself heard from God, the more light was shed on his path.  It was encouraging.  And perhaps I can tie this in with my own experience by noting that  the light will shine on your feet, your path or you living room, only if you actually turn it on by examining how you interact with it.

May your light shine today.