Our star status is a gift from the God we celebrate and worship, and as his children, we are a picture of peace.

Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe, as you hold out the word of life. Philippians 2:14-16

It was a picture of peace. The getaway to the north woods had the usual looks and smells. Morning coffee among the pines . . . boating and barbeque as the day unfolded. At day's end the crackling campfire at the water's edge beckoned sunburned vacationers carrying lawn chairs. Finally, like a type of four-part harmony, the day concluded with the sounds of stories, songs, frogs, and loons. Then I was alone in a pictureof peace.

It was one of those rare moments on a cloudless and windless night. The sky was on fire with stars reflected on the lake as flat as glass. It was so still and clear that one couldn't be sure where the sky stopped and the lake started. Everything was stars.

WE SHINE LIKE STARS

I wonder if it was on such a silent cloudless night that St. Paul recorded these words, "You shine like stars in the universe."

This is no time for confused or false humility. We are stars. Our star status shouldn't be confused with today's celebrity worship. Our star status is a gift from the God we celebrate and worship, and as his children, we are a picture of peace.

Stars sparkling against a backdrop of a black velvet sky are more spectacular. We Christians shine like stars against the black backdrop of those who live around us without faith in Jesus. The contrast is vivid. We are a picture of peace, and they are a picture of conflict.

Paul puts it this way, "Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation." Complaining and arguing are kissing cousins of people who are crooked and depraved. When people complain about the circumstances of their lives, they exhibit a crooked lack of contentment. When people argue with others, they exhibit a depraved lovelessness. There's nothing peaceful or loving about this. It's all about conflict. By contrast, the child of God strives to be blameless and pure . . . to shine like a star.

GOD ENABLES US TO SHINE

Left to ourselves, however, our shine fades to a flicker so that it can be difficult to see where the star stops and the darkness begins. We begin to blend in with our surroundings. The darkness we were born with still stalks us like a relentless hound.