Looking Eastward
And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.
Early last Monday morning, I left Wal-Mart and headed east. I was, as usual, in a hurry to get where I had to be, thinking what I had to do when I got there, how quickly I could get that done, and get to where I had to go next. Do you get tired just reading that? So goes my life, and I am sure does most of yours also. In between my mind racing, and myself racing trying to merge into traffic, in front of an eighteen wheeler, that didn't bother to switch lanes to let me in, I glanced at the eastern sky that was straight in front of me now. It was really what you would have to call a breathtaking view. I think I actually did stop breathing for a second or two as I took in all the beauty.
The sun was drawing water. If you don't know what that is, look at the picture above. The picture is just for an illustration. I couldn't find an image anywhere that came even close to capturing the beauty of the eastern sky that Monday morning. The technical name for this phenomenon is crepuscular rays. The way it is defined is beams of sunlight radiating from the sun. The way it is explained is complicated. The images only can be seen when many elements come into play at the exact same time. All I really knew about those rays that morning was that they had formed the most beautiful sky I had ever seen in my life.
I got to an exit, pulled over, and just set there and took it all in. I immediately thought of Jesus returning, how He is going to break the eastern skies one day. I wondered if this was maybe just a small sample of what the sky will look like on that day. I started calling people to go outside and look. I called family, I called friends. I even called the TV station. I thought perhaps they might use a shot of it during the weather cast that morning. The man at the station, surprisingly, didn't think I was making a prank phone call. He thanked me, saying he was going to stop what he was doing to go out and observe God's beauty.
I finished my errands and got to class. I stood out in the area where we wait for classes to begin. I watched as people passed with all the beauty right in front of them, never even looking up. A lot of the students were out in the smoking area. It faces the east. I just had to show the sky to a couple of the girls I knew. I said," Have you seen?" They hadn't even noticed, but when they stopped and looked, they were genuinely amazed. The streaks covered the entire eastern sky in perfect symmetrical rays of light all leading back to the sun, barely peeking from behind a cloud right in the center.
When classes were over that day the eastern sky was just a mass of gray clouds, no sun, no streaks. The clouds only spoke of rain that was very near. The sun indeed had drawn the water and the water would soon fall to earth. On my way home, and much of the rest of the day, I thought about "that" day, "the" day, when the Son will break the eastern sky. I wondered how it will be. I know it will happen quickly, in the blink of an eye, but I wondered will people have just a split second to think about calling someone to tell them to look at the eastern sky. "The Son is breaking through the clouds, He's drawing all men to Himself, go outside and look." Will there be people so very busy they won't even notice until He is right in front of them?
Today take the time to tell someone about the miraculous phenomenon of the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who came to this earth, died for us all, rose again on the third day, returned to heaven, is seated at the right hand of the Father, but is coming again to this earth very soon. You don't have to know exactly how the whole thing is going to work. You just have to know He is the most beautiful thing you have ever seen. You need only want others to behold His perfect love and forgiveness He has for them. Lead them to the place where all elements come together at just the right time for Jesus Christ to lovingly accept them, washing away every sin, giving them a feeling of peace so perfect that we can't understand it, giving them eternal life. Take them to the place where they will be forever watchful of the eastern sky, ready for Him to return in all his breathtaking beauty, one day soon, riding on the clouds.
Phenomenon- an observable event, to appear *
Revelation 1:7
Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.
*American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language
