Sunshine

March 15, 2018

“Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy 

Sunshine in my eyes can make me cry 

Sunshine on the water looks so lovely 

Sunshine almost always makes me high…”

In 1971, I graduated from college, and John Denver came out with “Sunshine” on his “Poems, Prayers, and Promises” album. The world understandably paid more attention to his song than to my graduation. This song began running through my mind today as I drove to Rochester to visit my mother. It was snowing when I left home, the clouds scudding across a grey sky. Half an hour later, the clouds began to break up, revealing beautiful blue that lifted my spirits. Waking to those grey skies a few hours before, I had to pray myself into a good mood, reminding myself that my feelings don’t necessarily reflect reality. It’s a lesson that took me years to learn, but it’s one of the most important truths I’ve ever discovered: that I have the power to choose how I feel by remembering what I believe. Sadly, the world is filled with people who let their circumstances or the people around them to dictate how they see themselves and how they feel.

Admittedly, it’s easier when the sun is shining. Years ago when I was in seminary, my Systematic Theology professor did his doctoral work in Edinburgh, Scotland. He came away convinced that John Knox’s dour Presbyterian theology was a direct result of the bleak Scottish weather. He may have been right. Driving from dreary to delightful, from snow to sunshine certainly made me feel better. My prayers didn’t hurt, either; they started me out on the right foot. All I had to do was keep walking and keep praying. And when on the way home, I drove from sunshine back into blizzard, I was still praying, praising, and thanking God for his peace and joy that are freely given to anyone who is willing to believe and receive. So, John Denver, your song was beautiful, but it’s Jesus Christ whose Sonshine makes all the difference.