Each day is like a miniature lifetime. The sunrise each morning is a symbol of birth and new life. Birds begin singing to welcome the new day and some flowers, like the morning glory, open in the morning when the sun comes up. The morning is when we (hopefully!) feel rested and strong and ready for the day’s tasks. And the light that comes with the dawn of each new day is a reminder of God’s light that he has shone into our hearts. “For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Cor. 4:6). Without God’s grace revealed through Jesus Christ we would be stuck in the dark night of sin’s power. But through the grace of Jesus Christ, God gave his light to us and we are born again. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…” (1 Peter 1:3). Let each sunrise be a powerful reminder that God has given you new life in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

The sunset each evening is a symbol of the end of life. Morning glories close their petals, birds find their roost, and we feel tired from the day’s demands and activities. After dark we lie down and drift into unconscious rest. Nightfall is a daily reminder of the reality that we will all one day face death. With the advent of electricity, technology has mostly conquered the night, but remember that for most humans throughout history, there was very little they could do to change the thick darkness that nightfall brought—they had at most perhaps a small lamp that gave a little light. Even with our technology, the night still represents the unknown, something that we cannot see past. And night is all the more frightening if you must face it alone. It’s much better to have a friend with you. Let each nightfall then be a reminder that you dare not face death and eternity without Christ. And let it be a sweet reminder of Jesus’ promises and presence in your life, Christian. You know your Lord; you know your destiny.

One day, when we are with the Lord, there will be no more night. We will live with the Lord forever, in one eternal day. John tells us “And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever” (Rev. 22:5). But until then, each sunrise and each sunset is a lesson: a reminder of the new birth we have in Christ, and a reminder of the coming night that we no longer fear because we have Jesus with us.