Thoughts on Sunrise

I often wake up before daylight and go watch the sunrise over Tampa Bay. It took me five minutes in heavy traffic this morning to drive from my house to this pier in Safety Harbor, FL. While there are a few things that come to mind every time I witness the sun breaking over the horizon, each of these thoughts have taken on a new light (pun intended) because Joses is always on my mind.

Just a passing moment of beauty

My father and mother are here visiting with us from Tennessee for a few days. My dad and I are early risers. Dawn was already upon us when we decided to drive to Safety Harbor to see the sun rise. Since it was so light outside already, we were afraid we were going miss that magical moment when the sun peaks it's brim over the horizon. The sky was on fire with every variation of red, yellow, and orange as we were driving. But just as God is faithful to his promises, the sun is was right on schedule this morning. We got there about ten minutes before that special moment. I started taking pictures of the dawn from different vantage points. It amazes me how each second gives you a different picture.

We saw a gentleman there that comes every morning with his dog. While we were paying attention to my dog Philo and the other dog playing with each other, the man said, "It sure is a beautiful sunrise this morning." When I turned around, only the bottom tip of the sun was no longer visible. We had missed those few seconds when the sun first comes in sight. I am always amazed at how quickly the sun rises.

While all of life is short, I am learning right now just how brief it passes. Even if we are in the rare category and get a few weeks or a few months with Joses, that time will seem so short compared to our expected life without him after he passes away. All we have are just moments with him to make the most of because they will soon be gone.

My thoughts then go to my own mortality and realize how quickly my life has been passing. It seems like just a couple of years have passed since college when in reality, it was a decade ago. It seems like I have always looked forward to that next step in life, but just like that sunrise this morning, the moment that I am in is gone as soon as it came.

The sunrise, time with my son, and the moment in which I am living are all beautiful. However, each fade away just as soon as they arrive.   "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,  (4)  to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,  (5)  who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time." (1 Peter 1:3-5)

This is a daily gift from God that I often miss

When I stand and watch the sun rise over the water, I think about how many people are missing this amazing moment. They are either sleeping, or driving to work, or preoccupied with other aspects of life. Then I realize how often I do not slow down to enjoy and appreciate the blessings of God. Even though the sun rises every day, I do not always see it. There are days that God sends blessings that I do not witness in person.

I do not know who originally said it, but I heard a common quote in a sermon once that says "What if you woke up today with only the things you were thankful for yesterday?" Sadly, I would not wake up with many things on most days. There are so many blessings in my life that I do not see, think about, or realize how sad my life would be without them.

On days I am tempted to think, "Why me? Why my son?"; I should ask "Why am I so blessed?" Instead of being sad or angry for the time I will not get with Joses, I should be thankful for the time I have with him now. There are so many lessons I am learning right now about God through my son. I do not want to have to bury Joses. However, growing closer to God over the past few months has been worth all of the pain I have felt. Is there a greater blessing than growing closer to God?

If God's temporary creation is this beautiful, how much more heaven must be

My son will never see the sunrise. He will not get to experience a soft breeze, the beauty of a waterfall, the feel of soft grass between his toes, or any other beautiful seen every day in this world. Although this makes me sad, I am reminded that heaven will surely be far more beautiful. 1 Timothy 6.15-16 describes God as "the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see."

If so much detailed beauty could be put in something temporary, how much thought and detail has gone into designing God's permanent home? My son will see far more beautiful things than I will while he waits for Jesus to call us all home to heaven.

With the temporary nature of this world, my desire is to be like Jesus, the ultimate example of God's Servant in Isaiah 50.4-5 who says, "The Lord GOD has given Me the tongue of disciples, That I may know how to sustain the weary one with a word. He awakens Me morning by morning, He awakens My ear to listen as a disciple. The Lord GOD has opened My ear; And I was not disobedient Nor did I turn back."