Livermore, California, will be recognizing a “special luminary” this month. The “Centennial Light Bulb” is a special bulb located at Station 6 of the Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department. This month marks the 110th year of this particular bulb’s (almost) continuous use. Except for a few instances when power supply was interrupted, the bulb has remained lighted since it was first switched on in 1901. For the last 35 years, the bulb has been connected to an emergency generator system that has kept the light on without any disruption. There even is a “BulbCam,” a video camera that monitors the bulb and broadcasts a continuous live feed over the Internet. The Guinness Book of World Records and Ripley’s Believe-It-Or-Not has authenticated its claim to the designation as the oldest working incandescent light bulb.
The longevity of the bulb has been attributed to different factors. Two of those factors are a low and steady power source, and a bulb with adequate capacity to receive and handle the current that runs through its filament (that part of the bulb that glows and emits light). The bulb functions as a constant light source, providing sufficient illumination (currently just 4 watts) to dispel the darkness inside the firehouse.
Proverbs 13.9 (CEV) tells us: “The lamp of a good person keeps on shining; the lamp of an evil person soon goes out.”
The “good person” or “the righteous” (NIV) are those who are open to receive unfailingly God’s direction and instruction, and who readily respond to moral correction. They are “built” to take in whatever the Lord brings into their lives, allowing the Lord to work his way in them and through them. The light of Christ will keep on shining through the life of such righteous persons. That light that shines through a life surrendered to Christ will endure.
By contrast, the “bad person” or “the wicked” (NIV) are those who refuse God’s instruction and who reject any kind of divine involvement in their lives. Such will soon discover that the light that they project, energized by this world, will not last. God himself will snuff out their lamp.
Here is the call to “be blameless and pure, children of God without blemish though you live in a crooked and perverse society, in which you shine as lights in the world by holding on to the word of life” (Philippians 2.15–16 NET). There is no need to be flashy or glitzy, just faithful and constant.
As Vallejo International celebrates 30 years of existence as a church and moves on to the future, may we be that faithful and constant light. May we keep on shining with the light of Christ, to the glory of God the Father.
—Keith Y. Jainga