Thought for Today
Genesis 1:16 God made the two great lights-- the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night-- and the stars.
Psalm 50:1 The mighty one, God the LORD, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting.
Matthew 5:44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 55 so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.
1 Corinthians 15:41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; indeed, star differs from star in glory.
It may seem like a small thing to some of you, but this morning, the sun is shining in the east. After several days of cloudy gloom and almost constant snowfall, the sun is peeking out from the thin clouds overhead.
Living along the Texas Gulf Coast, I was used to seeing the sun, sometimes too much so. On moving to New England, I learned a lot about Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). For the first time in my life, my doctors are checking my vitamin C and vitamin D levels to make sure I get enough exposure to the sun in the winter.
We just experienced a major snowstorm. One list we just saw ranked this snowstorm as the 10th heaviest snowstorm Boston has experienced. Living north of Boston and further away from the coast, I suspect our total snowfall exceeded the ‘official’ Boston total of 20.2”. Snowstorm #6 on that list we saw occurred during our first New England winter in 2015. Four of the top 10 were in the 20th century; the remainder were in the 21st century.
In addition to the health benefits of (finally) seeing the sun, I quickly learned that even in cold temperatures, the sun does heat up the roadways and driveways to help clear the snow, ice and sludge from the snowfall. I used my snowblower twice over the weekend to clear our driveway. I used my snow shovel 3 times to clear what the snowblower left. This morning, I went out again to clear a path on the driveway to get to our mailbox. If the mail carrier does make it out today, I wanted to get a letter picked up. Even with all my efforts, there is still a coating of snow, ice and sludge on most of the driveway. Hopefully, the sun will begin to heat up the thinner spots and the areas where the asphalt is peeking through.
Most of us know about the importance of the sun in agriculture. Generally, our days are organized around the rising of the sun and its setting. Even if we do not live on a farm or never did, we tend to rise more or less with the sun. Businesses and industry begin the workday in daylight. Yes, some go round the clock with night shifts and swing shifts. But, if you have ever worked a night shift or swing shift, you know the difficulty of establishing healthy sleep patterns during the day.
“Circadian rhythms are natural, internal processes that follow a roughly 24-hour cycle, regulating various biological functions in living organisms.” (Copilot Search) As a Christian, this all makes sense to me, since the God who made those “two great lights” is the same God who in Genesis 2:7 “formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being.” Our God created us to be creatures of light.
I often think about Jesus’ words above, that God “makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.” Admittedly, after this past weekend, I’m suspecting the same is true about snowstorms. It would be nice to think that the evil and unrighteous got just a little more snow, ice and sludge on their driveways. But, that is not the way things work in God’s world.
This morning, and every morning, I am reminded that God loves all of God’s children, the good, the evil, the righteous and the unrighteous. God does make God’s sun rise on us all. God has provided this glorious Creation for us all. The sun, the moon, the stars, all of the weather phenomena of rain, sleet and snow are equally provided for God’s children, for all of us.
As I think on that truth, I hear in my head the words of that favorite childhood hymn, Jesus Loves Me. “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.” When I go out later to use my snow shovel to aid the sun in clearing the driveway, I know that all of God’s children will be equally dealing with the aftereffects of our snowfall, good, evil, righteous and unrighteous. God loves us all.
Stay safe, stay warm, trust God,
Pastor Ray