predictable beauty

My dad texted me this picture from our lakehouse the other night.

We have been going to Lake Athens my entire life. I’ve literally seen hundreds of these sunsets. Every night the sun sets in the exact same spot over the lake. It’s one of the things I miss the most about Texas.

No matter how many of these sunsets I see, they never get old. Even though the sun goes down in that exact same spot night after night, each time it somehow looks a little bit different. The sky is a little different. The clouds are a little different. The colors are a little different.

But one thing is constant… I am always captivated by the beauty.

Of course there are nights when it’s stormy and you can’t see the sunset at all. These nights can be cool in their own way – taking cover under the roof of the dock as the rain pours all around you, hearing the booming Texas thunder, watching the lightning storms in the sky. And even though you can’t see the sun, you know it’s still there behind the clouds.

And if you’re lucky… when the storm is over, the clouds will part and you will catch the most breathtaking glimpse of God’s glory, seemingly streaming right down from the heavens.

“The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” – Psalm 19:1

And then every once and a while, you get a truly epic sunset. A sunset that is stunning and vibrant beyond belief. A sunset so beautiful it seems pretend. A sunset so incredible, a photo can’t possibly don’t do it justice. A sunset like this one…

Sunsets like this one are pretty rare. We might see about one a year. But the things about that is… you never know if tonight will be that night.

I think these Texas sunsets are a lot like life. Occasionally we have days that bring storms – hopefully not too many. Just enough to make you appreciate the good days. Just enough to make you stronger.

And then there are days that bring epic sunsets. Days that stand out among the rest. These days could be milestones – birthdays, graduations, weddings – or they could be days that start out ordinary and end up being extraordinary in the most wonderful and unexpected of ways.

But most days? Well, most days are predictable. Much like the “predictable beauty” of these common sunsets.

Most of our days are like the beautiful sunsets. These days are the ones we expect. They are nothing out of the ordinary. In fact, they can seem boring, predictable, and even dull at times. But they are good days, nonetheless. They are beautiful days.

I think so often we get caught up in our day to day routine that we forget to look around and appreciate the beauty around us.

This life is beautiful. Like the most predictable of sunsets, let us never fail to be captivated by the beauty of each day.

“The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, you call forth songs of joy.” – Psalm 65:8