God of Light

Do you believe in the sun? Yes, the sun - that great, big ball of light that hangs around in the sky for 8-12 hours per day or so, illuminating our lives and warming them by its powerful rays. That sun. Do you believe in the sun? 

Does it matter if you do?

If you stopped believing in the sun, right now. If you found a way to somehow deny its existence. If you were able to turn your back and close your eyes really hard or hold up a big piece of cardboard or an umbrella and block it out, would it matter? Could you, by refusing to believe, somehow cause the sun to cease existing?

Of course not. 

Whether you believe in the sun or not, it illuminates your life. Whether you believe in it or not, it nourishes life all around you. Whether you believe in it or not, it determines the temperature of the atmosphere that you inhabit. You can ignore it, deny it, refute it all you want, but put your feet on the black asphalt in the middle of the day and you realize...it doesn't matter. The sun exists, and it affects everything - believing or not. 

The same thing is true about God. 

I chose the sun as an example for a few reasons, many of which might be obvious. One of the main reasons I chose it is because the verse in Job that prompted this reflection says, "As for His light, is anyone not illuminated?" In other words, is there anyone in all creation that God's light doesn't shine on?

The answer is no. 

That doesn't mean it's for lack of trying. There are those who try to deny, ignore, refute, rebuke, dismiss the notion of God, but like the sun, it doesn't matter. God's light shines on everyone. God's light hits everything. God's light illuminates life as we know it. It determines the temperature of the atmosphere in which we live. It nourishes the life all around us. 

We may try to hold a big piece of cardboard or an umbrella over our heads to block it out, but even in doing that, we must admit that there is something that exists that is affecting us that we are trying to dismiss, diminish, deny, refute, ignore. And the minute that we must confess we are trying to deny it, we must also confess that there is something there to deny. 

God's light shines on all of us. Believers...or not. 

What is He illuminating for you today?