“And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.” Mark 16:2 KJV
I woke very early this morning. When you are on vacation, you’re not supposed to do that. Vacations are for going to bed late and getting up late. Since it is only Tuesday, and I’m a regular early riser, I haven’t adjusted to that schedule yet.
Last year, at the beach, I took my grandchildren to the beach to watch the sunrise. No one else came along. I guess everyone else had adjusted to the staying up late, getting up late routine. Since I was up early anyway, I decided to go to the beach the day before I was to take the grandkids so I could see what time the sun actually came up.
It was very dark as I got the sand between my toes. I walked up and down the beach, in complete darkness, trying to decide where the best place was to watch the sun come up. Once I settled into my spot, I started waiting for the sun to do its part.
It was an absolutely clear night. A slight breeze came from the north. I only noticed one or two fellow sun-rising followers up and down the beach. The stars shone brightly in the early morning sky. What a perfect moment in a perfect location.
I then noticed the moon. There was only a small sliver of light reflecting off the edge of her. The rest of her was darkened out, but you could still make out her round shape. This effect made it look like the moon was actually smiling on me. She pretty much stayed there until I left the beach to go back to the beach house.
It was an absolutely incredible sunrise. Different colors filled the sky at different times. As the sun finally decided to come out of hiding, it peeked over the distant horizon. Soon half of her was exposed. Gradually, the little ball of fire just sat on top of the water.
The biggest thing I noticed about this sunrise was that the moon, with her smile, just seemed to sit there watching it with me. It was almost like God was saying, “Now, watch this.” Then the colors would change, yet they were just as beautiful. The moon, and God, seemed to be just as excited about the sunrise as I was. They seemed to be happy that I was happy.
Slowly, the sun arose like a balloon filled with helium. The higher she arose, the more the colors faded. I knew the show was over and I headed back to the beach house.
God wakes up every morning and every morning he performs an equally amazing act. The soft rolling of the waves, the smell of salt in the air, the sandpipers strolling across the stage looking for food, a pelican floating a foot or two above the water’s edge, and such beautiful colors filling the sky. Every day He does this. Yet most people never even notice.
Forgive me for a moment. I want to gripe a little bit. It seems year after year all I hear is what a bad President we have. It’s not just our present President, this has been going on for several Presidents now. Basically, one side is really upset that the President isn’t carrying about his task the way they want him to.
Don’t get me wrong, they may be completely right in their opinion that the President is not in line with their train of thought. “He’s ruining our country,” and “I’m just going to move to Canada” are some of the voices of frustration I hear. It’s not just this President, it has been the last four Presidents, two Democrats and two Republicans.
I woke up this morning, and guess what? I am living in the greatest country on earth. Four years ago, guess what? I also woke up living in the greatest country on earth. Two totally opposite Presidents. Two totally different views on the direction our nation should head. Two totally different sides yelling how bad it was when their candidate did not sit in the White House.
Somewhere along the line we Americans have totally forgotten what a great country we live in. We judge our country by the leader who sits in the Oval Office. Yes, he may be the one who is temporarily in charge of most of the government, but he is not America. We are America.
Our attitude is a strong reflection of what type of a nation we are. Right now, we are very angry and very vocal. We look first at the bad and we dig in our heels to and refuse to find any good in those who oppose us. We can’t see any good because we let the bad rule over us. A feeling of weakness overcomes us when we even slightly hint that there might be even one or two things an opponent is doing that is right.
The saddest part of all this negative attitude is that we miss so much. We miss the miracle that is called America. We miss freedom because we are so worried about protecting our own and we forget everyone else is also entitled to that same freedom. Most of all, we miss the chance to love our neighbor because we are so busy finding his faults.
We wake up and stumble to the coffee pot. We jump in the shower hoping it will wake us enough to start our busy day. As we approach the doors of the place of our employment, a sense of dread overcomes us. We stare at the clock hoping her hands move quickly to our quitting time. Oh no, we have that commute home. When we open the front door, disappointment overcomes us as supper isn’t ready or it’s not what we were hoping for. We have a few hours before we have to rest our weary bodies and eyes. Then the whole things starts over again the next morning.
Wouldn’t it be so much better if we approached our daily lives like the sandy steps we take on the beach? Maybe we could look forward to the day with the same anticipation and patience we have as we wait for the sun to come up. The end of our days could very much be like that walk back to the beach house. There is an extra pep in our step and a smile across our face.
God has made each day amazing and beautiful. We just decide to turn our backs to the sunrise or just sleep right through it. Challenges are opportunities. Difficult people are chances to prove how much God really means to you. Hopeless situations grant us the opportunity to totally hand it over to God rather than do it all ourselves.
How about you? Do you want to see the sunrise or do you just want to pull the covers back up over your head?
Wow. Some fantastic writing here. Not only did I feel like I was there on that beach through your imagery, but could identify with the infinite being of the Creator through all his handiwork.
Your questions make me reflect on Jesus’ thoughts of take no thought for the morrow. As humans with limited understanding, we incessantly think, plan, remember, and then plan some more, very often never enjoying the present moment, which is really the only one we have. When we can learn to be gracious every morning just being granted a life, and the experience itself, life suddenly has so much more meaning.
Thanks for reminding us! By the way, your grand kids are beautiful children! 🙂
Thanks Josh!
They really are some beautiful kids! This is really a great country and they deserve to see it as the blessing it is and not the scary way it is often painted today. I hope to do my part to help them see that and I know you will, too.