Brighten the World with What You’ve Got
Yesterday, in my blog, I encouraged us all to brighten our little corners of the world. In other words – to bloom where we are planted, to shine in spite of clouds, reach the one God puts in our pathway, to let our little lights shine for Jesus. And, hopefully, we are all brightening our world from our corners!
While I was doing “my thing” to be one of Christ’s little lights, apparently, so was Carrie Underwood and CeCe Winans at the ACM Awards on Sunday night. I read Kayla Babson’s remarks on a friend’s social media post:
“About a month ago, there was a performance on the Grammys that went viral. While some argued that it was inappropriate and vulgar, others tried to use it as a picture of how far our culture has come in embracing female empowerment. Last night, there was another awards show on that same network. I would argue that the posture represented in these pictures and the 7-minute performance from the ACMs is really what we should be making viral and setting as an example in our culture to our young girls. May we choose to live our lives surrendered to the God worthy of our worship as we give back to Him the gifts He has given to us!”
And, I reply to Kayla’s words – “AMEN! Living our lives surrendered to being His bright lights that point the way to Christ!” Being a recipient of Dr. Jim Denison’s daily blog, I read on about what I missed by not watching the ACM Awards. Carrie was given the freedom to “Take us to church” as stated by the ACM Awards’ official Twitter account. And that is exactly what Carrie and CeCe did for seven minutes during the show.
It seems that both ladies not only demonstrated their remarkable vocal range, but they had a clear passion for the songs they shared. Since I’ve watched the video of their performance, I can wholeheartedly agree! Whether it was Carrie’s stirring acapella rendition of “Amazing Grace” or the duo’s collaboration on “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” and “The Old Rugged Cross,” it would be difficult to deny the excellence of their performance, even for those who may not ordinarily have given a second thought to the content of what they sang. While few can replicate both women’s vocal brilliance, each of us can aspire to their commitment to using the unique set of gifts (our lights) that God has granted us to the best of our ability and to the pursuit of His glory. Sure, Carrie and CeCe are exceptional singers, but it’s difficult to see many others being given a platform at a secular award show to spend more than seven minutes singing hymns about the Lord. Their faith was given a showcase. And as I said yesterday, their faith was the “light on a hill” that others need to see.
The ACM Awards official Twitter account said: “@carrieunderwood & @cecewinans are the duo we never knew we needed!” #ACMawards
And, yes, that is exactly what our world needs. When we have the options to binge on negative news reports that steal Christ’s light from us, we can transmit the need for God’s grace, the Lord’s unwavering faithfulness, and His offer of salvation to us all. Everyone who witnessed the duo’s soulful performance walks away having encountered the gospel. They may not fully realize it, but the seeds have been planted for the Holy Spirit to work through those lyrics to help people encounter the Lord, perhaps for the first time.
And if we live so on purpose to serving the Lord in excellence, offering our best to Him in recognition of the fact that He has offered His best to us, then there is no limit to what He can accomplish through our lives. And each day offers us a new opportunity to do just that. What will God be able to accomplish through our lives today? Are our little lights shining?
Do yourself a favor by brightening up your day with the duo’s performance: https://youtu.be/B-Ryd6xwTn4