“Send out your light and your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling!” (Psalm 43:3). These words are a request for God’s presence. When you pray these words, you are asking God to navigate and direct the path that you take. You ask him to shine his light on each situation and to teach you how to evaluate the circumstances and path of your life to make decisions that are Christ-like—“send out your light and your truth.”

When you and I walk by the light of our own version of truth, led by our own desires and fears, we risk lives twisted with the deception of self-interest. Feeding our own desires seems to lighten the burdens of our lives temporarily without providing any real change or hope.

Instead, we ask for God’s light and truth to provide the beam of light for our journey. We can be confident that he shows us, step by step, the way forward to a Christ-like life. We can open ourselves up to love and honor others above ourselves and to love and honor God above everything.

Jesus called himself the Light of the world. In the gospels, we see example after example of Christ calling people to change their way of looking at life. As the light of God’s truth radiates, it frees us from bondage. Changing our ways and living by God’s light and truth is not the end of life; it is a meaningful beginning.