Sunshine surprise

This week we've had some unseasonably cold, wet, and gloomy days. Our temperatures went down to low teens (Celsius). I don't enjoy Tokyo's version of cold, so it was particularly discouraging to have to pull out my long underwear, heaters, and extra blankets that we'd only just put away after the long winter months.

I come from a state known as the Sunshine State and there is good reason for that. Only 30% of days are completely overcast. (Tokyo sits much closer to 50%.) I find cloudy, cold days pretty depressing. Though cloudy warm days (i.e. over 20˚C), not so much.

So, after revelling in some gorgeous warm spring days in recent weeks, this week hasn't been so enjoyable. But then yesterday the sun came out. In fact it seemed a little more dramatic than that to me. I drove an hour to Costco in the cold rain. I had the heater on in the car. I was inside for less than two hours and when I came out the sun was shining brightly and inside the car was very warm.

As I drove home I remembered the words I'd read just the night before in John Hindley's You Can Really Grow. He wrote that you can use creation to help you focus your eyes on Jesus. I knew this, but he went a bit further in explaining it.

When we read a verse like Revelation 1:16 'His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance', it is not that the Holy Spirit was searching for a way to describe the brightness of Jesus' face, and realised the sun would be a good image. No, the sun was made in the first place in such a way that it would declare the brightness of Christ. When you see and feel the light and warmth of the sun, you are not meant to think Jesus is a little like this; you are meant to think that the sun is a little like Jesus, and that he put it there to help you remember that and be amazed by him. (p 81)

So, right there, in the midst of Tokyo traffic I was able to worship Jesus by enjoying the warmth and light the sun brought us yesterday afternoon.

I went on in my reading of the book last night and also enjoyed the next chapter about people and stories. It talks about seeing reflections of God in people and in the stories we read and see. Also balancing that by noticing the brokenness that our sin brings into the world.

He challenges his readers to be proactive in our thinking, not just in worshipping through what we notice around us, but also to reject that which will draw us away. Not by withdrawing from society, but by actually just noticing things that will cause us to draw away from Jesus and not allowing those things to take root.

I'm finding this book a refreshing read. Have you been refreshed in spirit by something recently? Do share.