Sunrise
When life is full of trials, mornings are hard. It's hard to wake up, hoping that you have had a bad dream, only to discover that it's real life and you are living in the midst of difficulty and sorrow. Over the past few years I've had many mornings like that. One of them was the morning of my Uncle Charlie's funeral.
I felt a weight of darkness and sorrow at the loss of such a wonderful man who meant so much to me. It hurt that he had to go through such a difficult physical battle and that my family members had to see him like that. It hurt that we had gone through so many trials in the previous few years and I struggled with feeling like God had abandoned us.
As I made my bed, I pictured the funeral, and thought about how those of us closest to Uncle Charlie would be referred to as his "loved ones." And then I saw the sunlight streaming through the blinds. Suddenly the darkness lifted and I felt like God was saying, "That's what you are. You are my loved ones. I cause the sun to rise on the righteous and the unrighteous, and you both face trials, but I am with you." Bits of scripture flooded my mind and I wrote down this song.
Tears in a Bottle
Look up loved one,
And see the sun I’ve sent to greet you,
Don’t say I’ve hid my face;
Tomorrow I’ll send the rain on all those who know my name,
And those who need to;
The hairs on your head are numbered
And don’t think that I don’t know you,
Your tears I’ve kept in a bottle
And don’t think that I don’t know your pain;
You’ve forgotten,
I hold forever in my hand;
No life is cut short,
Woven together
By my plan;
The hairs on your head are numbered
And don’t think that I don’t know you,
Your tears I’ve kept in a bottle
And don’t think I don’t know all your pain;
Look up loved one,
And see the sun I’ve sent to greet you,
Don’t say I’ve hid my face.
Yesterday I illustrated part of the song.
How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?How long will you hide your face from me? - Psalm 13: 1
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. - Matthew 5: 43 - 45
"Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God.Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows. - Luke 12: 6 - 7
"You have kept count of my tossings;put my tears in your bottle.Are they not in your book? - Psalm 56: 8