Ringing our bell

     Not long ago, I saw a beautiful Saint Bernard dog, and it reminded me of the sweetest Saint Bernard that my brother, Britt, had when he was younger.  Her name was Da.C. (short for Davidson College though it was pronounced like the flower).  She was ginormous (duh), had the mother of all fur coats, and though her size might be intimidating, she had an incredibly gentle and laid-back disposition.  I'm betting she hated our N.C. summers, but she was always up for a romp around the neighborhood--sometimes unaccompanied, in which case we might spend hours looking for her.  But she was worth it.
      When I thought about Da.C., it reminded me of a story behind the historic Saint Bernard Pass--the location high in the Alps where the Saint Bernard dogs originated (or so I've been told).  There's a hostel run by monks at this pass.  In the last century, during the frequent snowstorms, the snow would so fill the air and obscure any kind of vision of the way ahead, that a traveler would be unable to see the trail up the mountain.  And, of course, this would be terribly dangerous, even deadly.
     But the monks came up with an ingenious solution: they would ring a great bell continuously during the storms, so that any potential travelers could follow the sound of the bell and find their way through even the most blinding of snowstorms.  Montgomery Boice commented on this: "That is what I want to do.  I want to sound the bell.  Life is sometimes so filled with the mist of afflictions and sorrows (or whatever it may be) that we cannot see the way clearly.  But here is a bell that all can hear and follow.  Come to Me!  Come to Me!  It is the invitation of the Lord to anyone who will hear..."
     I've thought about that a lot.  Isn't that what we are all called to be and to do?  We can be that bell sounding out the way for others who might be walking through the darkness of despair or defeat or disappointment to encourage them in their life's journey and to help lead them to the Lord.  O Father,  help me to be a bell that sings forth Your love and that draws others to Your Light and out of the darkness.
     Jesus said, "I am the Light of the world.  Whoever follows Me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (John 8:12)  Might we be His light-bearers as we ring out His love and goodness and faithfulness to a dark world.  To God be the glory.