“Thunderously Loud, Blindingly Bright”

(a Steve Orr Bible reflection)

I clearly remember the first time I heard—and was shaken by—a rocket engine. The testing of them is a fairly common experience for those of us living near SpaceX. That deep-throated roar has been known to shake pictures off walls, objects off shelves, and nappers off couches. 

During that first test, there was one question on the mind of every person: What is happening?!  It kept happening, though. In time, our adrenaline levels eventually stopped shrieking "Emergency!" Soon, we downgraded to: "Oh, that again." It was still loud, and it still shook houses. But nothing bad followed all that noise; nothing momentous occurred. 

The excitement waned. 

We settled down.  

We got used to it.

That's the situation confronted by the prophet Isaiah in this week's scriptures. God had been active in the lives of the Jewish people for centuries. God had previously presented as a giant pillar of fire or a great whirlwind (think: tornado or hurricane). Sometimes God appeared with such a roar that ordinary people were afraid to approach. 

God could be blindingly bright, thunderously loud. 

Eventually, though, people came to take God for granted. Oh, they still did the religious things. They fasted, made sacrifices, participated in worship. And, in their minds, that was enough. 

They had moved past the excitement of following God's commandments for living. They quarreled and fought with each other. They let the hungry get even hungrier. They denied justice to those who were falsely imprisoned. They were supposed to bring the homeless into their own homes, to free the oppressed, and to be caring for their relatives—but, no. 

No time for any of that stuff; too busy being busy. And all the time they were wondering where God had gotten to. 

Because they no longer did as God asked, God instructed Isaiah to "Shout out, do not hold back! Lift up your voice like a trumpet! Announce to my people their rebellion!" Nothing else was getting their attention. They could no longer hear the roar, no longer see the light.

What about us? Are we deaf to that roar, blind to that light? Where do we go to experience God’s presence? Where do we modern folk fit into this message?

Consider this week’s Matthew passage: Jesus “flips the script.” Instead of encouraging his listeners to change their ways so they can experience God’s bright light, He tells them they are the light of the world and that they must not hide their light. They must act in such a way that everyone can see their light. How? They are to do good works (see the Isaiah passage) in such a way that everyone will give the glory to God. 

God’s bright light isn’t gone. It’s just experienced differently. It’s up to us to ensure people see it. People need to be able to identify us, without having to turn over a bushel to check the strength and quality of our light. We need to be obvious. We need to be, unmistakably, the people of God. 

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Ears to hear…

Katy Perry’s Firework

Colbie Caillat’s Brighter Than the Sun

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As we move through the season of Epiphany, join us Friday morning at DaySpring’s Lectionary Breakfast. Fat Tuesday will be upon us before you know it, and then Ash Wednesday and Lent. Next thing you know, we'll be celebrating Easter. 

Take time to fellowship with us on Zoom* or at Our Breakfast Place. We start at 8:00 and finish around 9:00. We eat, we laugh, we pray, and we spend some quality time in God's word. Hearing the roar. Seeing the light. 

Rocket Scientists welcome.

Blessings,

Steve

*Zoom link (Zoom allows you to mute the camera and the microphone if you don’t wish to be seen or heard.)

SCRIPTURES FOR SUNDAY AND THE COMING WEEK

Find them here

Print them here

Isaiah 58:1-9a (9b-12)

Psalm 112:1-9 (10)

1 Corinthians 2:1-12 (13-16)

Matthew 5:13-20

Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany (February 8, 2026)