Rjukan's Mirrors

We are his servants because the same God who said that light should shine out of darkness has given us light. For that reason we bring to light the knowledge about God’s glory which shines from Christ’s face.
-Apostle Paul, 2 Corinthians 4:6

The idea of light breaking into darkness isn't just a spiritual concept. This week I learned about the tiny industrial town of Rjukan, Norway. Because of where Norway sits on the globe, its winters have about 18 hours of darkness, and only 6 of daylight. But Rjukan is even more extreme than that. Hidden deep in a valley with steep mountains on both sides of the village, the town receives absolutely no sunlight for 5 months of the year. It's always shaded. 

Town residents can look high on the mountain walls and watch the sunlight creep down the mountain in the morning. But just as it gets near the town, the sunlight starts receding up the mountain again. So close, but always out of reach. 

In 1913, the founder of the small town dreamed of bringing sunlight down to the people, but it proved impossible. Yet, the dream never fully died. A century later, in 2013, it became reality. The town installed three giant mirrors on the mountain, using solar technology and small windmills to shift the mirrors every 10 minutes with the sun's movement. The mirrors reflect the sunlight onto the town square, giving the locals a place to escape the ever-present shadows during some of the darkest days of the year and bathe in the redirected sunlight. And it's available to anyone! 

Rjukan's creative solution carries a profound message, far beyond physical light. ​

---

The mirrors speak to me on multiple levels. I am reminded of the mystical way that even when the natural circumstances of our lives and our world feel like they shut out light, that God's goodness is always creative enough to find access to us. Even when we despair and think it impossible, God is gracious enough to bring love, hope, beauty, warmth, and even joy into our lives when the world feels cold and dark. There is truly no place and no person that is beyond the reach of God's light. Even during the dark valley moments, as Psalm 23 says, "Even though I walk through the darkest valleys, I will fear no evil, for you are with me." 

But I also see this "reflection of light" as an image of what we can be for each other. I'm encountering many people feeling the long shadows of a winter without much light. I feel it myself too. Right now the world feels heavy-- with anger, hurt, and discouragement pressing in. It goes beyond big picture philosophies and politics. Many people I care about are going through difficult seasons related to health, personal loss, stress, and mental fatigue. Some have lost employment without a moment's notice or care. Some are dealing with serious depression. 
​
The valley is full of shade. 

We do not need to spend our energy attempting to manufacture some light. Most of the times when I do that, it feels forced or fake. I'm learning that I'm fairly powerless to create light on my own when I'm tired or discouraged myself. But what we can do is reflect. We can reflect the compassion that we know to be true from God. We can channel the deep forgiveness and mercy that we have received in our own lives, and let it bounce from us to those we interact with. 

The invitation for us is to both position ourselves in the light and angle ourselves toward others so that the goodness of God brings a bit of warmth and light into places dominated by chill and shade. 

The good news of Jesus, and the message of Rjukan for me today, is that the light is always available. We may need to just do a little climbing and think outside the box a bit. And in the hardest moments where we just don't feel any encouragement directly from God, we have the gift of looking to sisters and brothers around us who might be able to reflect a bit of God's light toward us. God's goodness comes in many ways. 

Seek the light, friends. And when you find it, pause. Sit in the square and receive it fully. Let it fill you before you step back into the world to reflect it. God's grace and God's love are always available. Today, live in the beauty of that truth. 

Jesus, may I be a light receiver and a light reflector today. 

Peace,
Keith