SUNRISE: AN INVITATION TO LIFE

There is something about the sunrise that fills me with a sense of possibilities. It’s a new day. Opportunity. Do you awaken for the dawn?

Sunrises

Morning is when I do my best work. How about you? In the morning my thinking is clear. Sitting in a comfortable chair with a view through our living room window of the darkened sky over our street; a café mocha, fountain pen, journal and my Bible is all I need to get amped up for the day. And then the dawn starts to break. Watching the sunrise paint the clouds with spectacular colours never gets old for me.

The sun always rises and shines. Even when clouds cover the entire sky, the sun rises, shines and warms the earth. Day after week after month after year after decade after century after millennia.

There has never been a day without the sun.

Winter Solstice

December 21^st is the shortest day of the year, the one with the least amount of light. But the sun still rises and shines. Even when clouds cover the entire sky, the sun rises, shines and warms the earth. Day after week after month after year after decade after century after millennia. There has never been a day without the sun.

Sunrise is a magical moment because it is so limited. The beauty lingers briefly and is gone as quickly as it arrives. I wish I could hang onto it for the entire day, which is why my iPhone is filled with images of sunrises.

An Invitation to Life

NY Times best-selling author, Glennon Doyle, says “The sun shows up every morning, no matter how bad you’ve been the night before. It shines without judgment. It never withholds. The sun warms the sinners, the saints, the druggies, the cheerleaders—the saved and the heathens alike. You can hide from the sun, but it won’t take that personally. It’ll never, ever punish you for hiding.

You can stay in the dark for years or decades, and when you finally step outside, it’ll be there. It was there the whole time, shining and shining. It’ll still be there, steady and bright as ever, just waiting for you to notice, to come out, to be warmed.

All those years, I thought of God and light and the sun as judgmental, but they weren’t.

The sunrise was my daily invitation from God to come back to life.” (Carry On Warrior)

Vitamin D For Your Soul

Sunshine is a source of vitamin D. We need vitamin D for mental wellness and health. Wintertime is when people struggle most with seasonal affective disorder (SAD). In the winter when there’s less sunshine and the temperatures keep us indoors, we need a vitamin supplement. Get some vitamin D for your soul.

The best time of the year to embrace the sunrise is during the winter solstice. Even late risers can be up early enough to experience it. That’s one of the good things about a shorter day. There’s an opportunity for anyone to experience beauty that is only there for early risers in the summer months.

4 Supplements for Wellness in the Dark

1. Look for the beauty. Even in the cold, dark winter there is beauty. Start your search with the sunrise. Even if it’s in video or photo form because you psychologically cannot will yourself out of bed on winter day’s dawn. See beauty in the faces of people who love you and the spaces you love.

2. Look for the good. Zig Ziglar called it being “a good finder”. Network news shows what sells and that’s 99% bad news. So limit or shut off the news and broaden your scope to find what is good. There is SOMETHING good in everyday. See it. Capture it. Write it down. Take a picture. Celebrate it. Promote the good.

3. Keep moving. A compelling purpose that goes beyond profit in business or personal gain will pull you into an uncertain future. Keep going by going back to your purpose. Resiliency is the ability to keep moving. Rest if you must but don’t you quit. Make sure your purpose is clear and blessed by Jesus, like loving others. Random or planned acts of kindness are vitamin D for your soul. Who can you surprise today, with a phone call, Zoom call, Facetime, text, email or hand written letter?

4. Act grateful. An attitude of gratitude will give you the altitude to see hope. You can find gratefullness in the small things – breath, water, sky, sunshine or the ability to read this post.

What does sunrise mean to you? Where do you find beauty? Are you a good finder? What have you found? Please join the conversation and post a comment at the bottom of this post. Thank you.

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