“Sunlight, Sunlight In My Soul Today”

Send out your light and our truth; let them lead me.       –   Psalm 43:3  

Spending too much time basking in the rays of the sun can be hazardous to your health. You know that, even as your day is brightened, your skin will experience some damage. But imagine if the earth’s own star, the sun, were extinguished. What would happen? It takes eight and a half minutes for the light of the sun to reach the earth, so you wouldn’t notice the change immediately. Nine minutes later, however, you would find yourself in absolute darkness. The speed at which the earth would cool is not fully understood, but it is estimated that, even with surface temperatures stored in the soil, temperatures could fall below -100 degrees Fahrenheit within a year. The top few layers of the world’s oceans would freeze over. Since photosynthesis would stop, plants would die, and so would the animals who eat them, including humans. If the sun were to lose half of its mass, scientists say the earth’s would orbit collapse, and the planet you call home might spin off into deep space… assuming it could still spin. 

Life without God at the center is akin to walking in darkness, oppressiveness, and cold. Like a planet out of orbit, your path is not fixed, and it certainly is not illuminated. With light and truth comes safety. God’s character—and your own—are revealed in light.  

Just as a sunny day after a dreary spell brings joy, so walking in the light of the truth of God’s Word helps to lift depression and distress. Psalms 42 and 43 are often tied together into one long hymn of praise. Within Psalm 42, you find these words, “As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God” (verses 1-2). These words were made part of a worship chorus in 1984, “You alone are my heart’s desire, and I long to worship Thee.” Let the sunlight of God’s love brighten your soul and inspire you to worship. More than a flowing stream, He offers you living water!