Sunrise

I recently read that the Christian's growth into Christlikeness can be compared to a long sunrise. The darkness slowly fades and gives way to light. You cannot always measure the change, you just eventually notice that life is different than it was before.

This analogy to a sunrise has been on my mind over the past mornings. I have thought about the different kinds of sunrises. The slow ones on a clear summer day, where the darkness slowly gives way to purple then to blue. The brilliant ones where the sun defeats the darkness in a sudden blast of light against a snow covered world. And then ones like this morning - the sunrise in the storm.

We have a storm descending on us from the northwest, and an intense red sky to the east. The battle for the light of day is evident in the sky overhead, and the progress is clear as the tones of the sky are changing with each minute.

There are times in my life that are like a slow summer morning. My world is generally calm, and my growth, while still increasing, is not brilliant, blinding, or breathtaking. It is just slow and steady. Then there are the seasons like our sunrise this morning, when the storm is moving in and the Lord is quickly preparing me for the battle.

The challenge for me is to be content no matter what. I thrive on the storms of life, the challenges that push me beyond what I thought I could do. I often wish that each of my days could be as stunning as a red sunrise in the midst of the storm. But a calm steady sunrise on a cloudless day defeats the darkness too!