Sunshine makes all the difference in the way you feel

I’ve got a confession. I was scared of the dark when I was a kid.

When I woke up at night, things stumbled around the house. I thought I could hear Boris Karloff, the horror film star, or Frankenstein’s monster looking for kids to munch on.

Evidently, I’m not alone. In my favorite comic strip, Calvin & Hobbs, Bill Watterson depicts Calvin waking up in the night, needing to go to the bathroom. He’s got a problem that he discusses with Hobbs, his Tiger friend. It seems there are monsters under the bed.

They come up with a solution. Calvin will throw his pillow under the bed and run to the bathroom while the monsters are occupied with the pillow. But, when he does it, suddenly all kinds of horrible sounds break loose under the bed accompanied by flying feathers.

Calvin is frozen in place. Hobbs says, “What are you going to do?”
“I think I’ll just stay here and wet the bed.”

I’m no longer scared of Boris Karloff when I wake up at night but it’s rare that I’m optimistic. Problems seem two times worse and solutions seem further and further away. The world is a scary place—until the first rays of sunshine peek through the window.

Then everything becomes possible again. Light makes a difference.

Here in northern France we’ve had a winter where the sun had made itself scarce. Lack of light starts to get to you after awhile.

The last several days, though, the sun has come out of hibernation and you see the results on people’s faces. It’s amazing what sunlight does to your outlook on life.

I think I understand better what Jesus meant when he said, “I am the light of the world.” It’s midnight in our souls without Him.

People stumble around with no hope here and no hope for eternity. Then like Paul on the road to Damascus, the light shines on them. It’s not enough, though. I grew up in the American South. There you get plenty of sunshine, more than plenty in fact. But a well-tanned skin doesn’t necessary equal peace in your heart.

Those life-giving beams have to pierce you, light up your spirit.

We’ve got to open our hearts to God by faith and let his radiance enter our deepest being, chase the darkness out of every corner of our lives. How? It starts with a prayer.

“Father, forgive me because I’ve sinned against you. I turn away from my sin and I commit my life to your Son Jesus. Change me. Let the light of your truth flood my being. I want to follow you now and eternally.”

And it continues with prayer, the Word, being with others who love the Lord, and obedience to what God says. We learn to open all the windows of our heart and let God’s light flood in.

Monsters can’t stand the light, and neither can fear, doubt, sin, and hopelessness.

“Jesus summed it all up when he cried out, “Whoever believes in me, believes not just in me but in the One who sent me. Whoever looks at me is looking, in fact, at the One who sent me. I am Light that has come into the world so that all who believe in me won’t have to stay any longer in the dark.” (Jn. 12:44-46, The Message)

Boy, I love the sunshine!

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Hummm …
“Never let your mouth be on wifi when your brain is on dial-up.” Christi Lepant