We’ll Leave The Light On For You

We’ll leave the light on for you!
It was said in the first recording session for Motel 6.
This was an ad-libbed line spoken by Tom Bodett, their first and only spokesperson.
This one line has been the trademark of the longest, and the most successful advertising campaign in history.

I always loved that line.
I imagine a candle in the window…a lamp warmly beckoning.
Come on home!
You’re welcome here!

Imagine coming home to a dark house.
There is nothing less inviting.

But…a light left on…dinner warming on the stove…delicious smells wafting from the kitchen.
That’s the place you want to be!

Little children are afraid of the dark.
They will avoid it at all costs.
Cockroaches are mainly nocturnal.
They will run away when exposed to light.

When the Israelites were slaves in Egypt, God called Moses to speak to Pharaoh.

The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to say to you: Let My people go, so that they may worship Me in the desert. (Exodus 7:16)

Pharaoh would not listen and refused to let God’s people go.
The Lord sent a series of plagues upon the Egyptians: blood, frogs, gnats, flies, the plague on livestock, boils, hail, locusts, and darkness…ending with the plague on the firstborn.

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the sky so that darkness will spread over Egypt – darkness that can be felt. So Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky and total darkness covered all Egypt for three days. No one could see anyone else or leave his place for three days. Yet all the Israelites had light in the places where they lived.
(Exodus 10:21-23)

Darkness that can be felt.
Darkness that is so dark, you cannot see your hand in front of you.

Darkness is dispelled by one little light.
One match in a dark room pushes away the darkness.
One light!

We live in a dark world.
We can sugar coat it all we want.
It is a darkness that can be felt.
It is a darkness that can be seen.

It is a darkness that can be dispelled by One Light!

When Jesus spoke again to the people, He said, “I am the Light of the World. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12)

We have a way out of the darkness.
THE Way.
THE Light.
Jesus.

Think about the candlelight service on Christmas Eve.
The church lights are very dim…almost completely out.
One candle is lit.
From that candle, the deacons or ushers light the first candle in the row.
Each person lights the candle of the person next to them.
Soon the whole church is ablaze with light.

Luminous light…dispelling the darkness.
His Light…beginning with One…passed to another.

That is all it takes.
One light!

What difference can I make?
Shine His light and see!

The world does not know the way out of this darkness.
The world stumbles and thrashes about.
The world does not know any other way.

But we do!
We have the road map.
We have the flashlight.
We have the directions.

His name is Jesus.
Come follow Me and you will never walk in darkness.

Can you see it?
The Light…straight ahead…beckoning in the window.
Calling us home.

Who can you tell?
Who can you guide?
Can you point them to Him…so they can find their way home?

Do you see it?
It is so inviting.
He left the light on for you!

Come on Home!
You are welcome here.