If I hadn’t been holding back, I would have been ugly crying when my young nephews sang This is Me at their choir concert. They sang in all the innocence of their limited experience of the judgments and betrayals and abuse which the world throws at you and that makes you want to not just hide your light, but to extinguish it so that there is nothing left for the world to try to snuff out in you anymore. Their innocence in the face of those realities of the world made me cry.
But so too did the reality that, as much as I want to stand between them and any word which would try to cut them down… I can’t. I want to be the guardian of their souls. But I won’t be able to throw myself between them and every blow which might wound their precious souls and make them want to hide the unique and precious light which God placed inside of them… as he placed in each one of us.
I can’t protect them the way I want. Even from myself. Because sometimes I can’t even think far enough ahead to always bite my tongue and avoid a joke which might be hilarious, but makes them think twice about sharing who they are.
But I will do what I can. Because I have made those nephews wards of my tribe.
And my tribe is a tribe of people who are guardians of each other’s souls… people who will lift each other up so that each other’s light can shine brighter, rather than tearing each other down. My tribe is of people who know that one candle cannot dim another, but only makes the room brighter. My tribe is of people whose love and encouragement and understanding are the fuel which fan each other’s flames until all the darkness of the world is swallowed up in light. My tribe’s a bit ambitious… but… well, Jesus is in our tribe too. And he just happens to be the light of the world. So maybe our ambition is not too misplaced?
Maybe you might want to join my tribe too?
What? No? Kind of dorky? Ok…
Awkward invitations and theological musings aside, while my nephews’ rendition of this song will always be my favorite, I love the following rendition as well. There is so much real music and goodness going on here. And I’ve been thinking of a thought I had once of how we are all true artists– deeply connecting self expressive truth tellers out of our own uniqueness– until we face our first real critics and start to censor who we are. But I feel this music video does a good job of showcasing some true artistry… there’s some real authenticity here. And in my book, that makes the bestest music.
Enjoy watching all the candles make the room so bright:
And, also, this song says it all so well and captures more of the theology of candles: