The Miracle of Sunrise

This morning I got to enjoy another beautiful sunrise as I slogged through my morning run at the beach.  Every day offers such a beautiful sunrise!  The variables change:  clouds on the horizon, weather conditions, the surface of the sea.  But overall, each morning we get at least an hour of a wonderful sight, as the sky transitions from night to morning, as the sea shifts colors, from deep darkness to purples and pinks.

Today I noticed how many people seemed oblivious to the sunrise.  They jogged along with their eyes cast down at the pavement.  They read their books or laptops or cell phones.

I thought about the various Gospels that tell us to always be on the lookout for God.  I wasn't thinking as much about the apocalyptic ones, as about the ones for this Sunday.  I thought about tiny seeds and yeast, and how the kingdom of God is often unnoticed.

I thought about God as exuberant creator.  I thought about God who is so often saying, "Hey, look at this sunrise I just made!  Look at how I got these colors to slide together!!  Hey, I think I just made another color!!!  How cool is that?"

So, this morning I paused several times to watch the sun come across the horizon.  I said, "Great show, God!"  I agreed with the woman who said, "This is better than Mass!"

Of course, depending on your view of worship and why we assemble in our places of worship, you might have said, "No, what we're doing here IS Mass."