Trust Your Sonscreen

I cared for you in the wilderness, in the land of burning heat. Hosea 13:5

It’s one of the hottest summers on record. How hot is it? It’s so hot that your car’s seatbelt feels like a branding iron. When you go for a walk, you worry about passing out from the heat and frying on the concrete pavement. It’s so hot that farmers feed their chickens crushed ice to keep them from laying hard-boiled eggs! Okay, I’m exaggerating. But it is hot outside.

The media constantly reminds us that a good sunscreen provides the best protection from the sun’s ultraviolet rays. Without it, we risk getting sunburn or worse skin cancer.

Sunscreen is effective in a very simple way. Ultraviolet radiation from the sun consists of several different kinds of wavelengths. Protection from these unique waves comes in different forms. Sunscreen combines organic and inorganic ingredients that either reflect the sun’s rays or absorb and dissipate them as heat. The simple act of applying sunscreen shelters your skin from up to 98 percent of the sun’s harmful rays.

Ninety-eight percent protection is good, but as Christians we have access to an even better 100% guaranteed source of protection. Jesus Christ—the world’s best Sonscreen! Jesus protects our souls from life’s searing heat. The simple act of believing in Him guarantees that He will protect our souls from burning to a crisp or dying an agonizing cancerous death. When we apply Jesus rigorously and religiously to our lives, then we receive the full benefit of His protection. He will either reflect life’s harmful rays or allow us to absorb them and dissipate them in a Christ-like way.

If you trust in the protective power of sunscreen, a simple man-made substance, then how can you not trust in the protection that comes from Jesus Christ, our Savior, created by God Himself? Do you apply Jesus regularly throughout the day, every day? Do you believe that He will protect you?

The LORD watches over you—the LORD is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD will keep you from all harm—he will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore. (Psalm 121:5-8 NIV)