Special Shine

I am a self-professed gemstone geek. I (of course) love, love diamonds. But I also love, love the colored gems and the oddball gems. Right now I’m quite taken with labradorite.

Labradorite is a common looking dark gray-green opaque gem. It was first found in Labrador, Canada, hence the name. It doesn’t sound very pretty or appealing and it isn’t. Just an ugly rock. Until….light hits it. Then there is a wonderful display of color.

The effect is so amazing that they gave it a special name; labradoresence. Not very imaginative, but they didn’t ask me. When exposed to light there is an iridescence of green, blue, gold, and peach. It’s rather spectacular in my opinion.

And poor little labradorite is quite like me. I’m not all that. Just an ugly dark rock. Until…the light of the Christ shines on me. Then I display “Christianesence”. Yes, I made up that word.



For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord Ephesians 5:8-10

But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,“Awake, O sleeper,and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.” Ephesians 5:13-14


Christians reflect a special shine if we are reflecting the Lord. And that’s just the point. Just as labradorite needs light to expose its beauty so too we need to walk in the light of Christ to show our beauty.

And that is not always easy. We have a tendency to prefer to walk in sin instead of letting His light become visible in us. We are bombarded with worldly temptations that look pretty to us but only reinforce our ugliness.

The first part of chapter 5 Ephesians lists all of our ugliness. But (my friend says take everything after the word “but” and double the emphasis) now we are to recognize what is pleasing to our Lord and walk that way. True Christians should have a Christianesence.

That’s how we should walk,

with a special shine.