The Golden Lampstand
If a man is to shed the light of the sun upon other men, he must first of all have it within himself. – Romain Rolland
I was reminded recently from reading my journal from our times living in England of a profound dream I had while there. I dreamed I was looking in the direction of a church from a distance away and saw what seemed like a tornado or whirlwind directly over the church. I saw a golden lampstand going up into the whirlwind and heard the voice of God say, “They thought more of the things than they thought of me. Therefore, I will remove the lampstand first.” Then I saw many other material things coming up out of the church being lifted into the whirlwind. I will never forget the despair in God’s voice.
In researching the golden lampstands- as mentioned in Exodus, I Kings, Zechariah, and Revelation – only one lampstand was placed in the tabernacle to give light in the Holy Place. The attributes of the lampstand symbolize the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Its purpose was to give forth light day and night and it stood for God’s life-giving power. To be removed from the church first, as in my dream, meant there would be no light or power left in the church. Thus, only material things would be left. Thus, they would be insignificant and would be removed, as well. Without the light of God or His power, the rest of the church is useless in the Kingdom. Or as the preacher in Ecclesiastes would say, “All is meaningless.”
How often down through the years since that dream I have been reminded of God’s words, “They thought more of the things than they thought of me.” Those words have been my own indictment many times. Life has a way, if we let it, of magnifying the unimportant things to usurp the position that God should hold in our lives. Anything we allow to prioritize our time, our minds, our hearts, and our souls above God falls into this category of “things”.
Some of these “things” in my own life have been relationships with family or friends that often don’t even involve me. Also, as my husband and I approach full retirement, worry about finances for the future have often consumed my mind. Will we have enough, how long will it last, what will we do if the unexpected happens? Even spending a lot of time worrying if I am following God’s will rather than trusting Him to order my steps ahead of me, would fall into this category. We each have many things, even good things, that pull us away from our fellowship with our Creator.
I have found the closer I am to the lampstand with its light and its power, the less sway the things of the world have over me. As the line from the song taken from Psalm 62 says, “My soul finds rest in God alone.” You will find it nowhere else. My friend, when you find yourself drawn into things of this world, find the lampstand. Run to it, get close enough so the light dispels all the darkness of the other things in your life. There you will find your rest.
And in the middle of the lampstands
I saw one like a son of man,
clothed in a robe reaching to the feet,
and girded across His chest with a golden sash.– Revelation 1:13, NAS
