The Benefit of Lots of Sonlight

by Hexon J. Maldonado

Many people do not realize that being in sunlight is vitally important to being physically healthy. This is because Vitamin D “is made from cholesterol in your skin when it’s exposed to the sun. That’s why getting enough sunlight is very important for maintaining optimal vitamin D levels.”[i] Despite this, it is reported that “more than 40% of American adults have a vitamin D deficiency.”[ii] This is partly due to poor diet but is also partly related to not getting enough sunlight. And not getting enough sunlight can have significant negative effects on the body’s overall health.

For example, low levels of Vitamin D reduce the amount of serotonin produced in the brain which can lead to feelings of depression and can lead to “mitochondrial dysfunction, which leads to a decrease in [energy] production.”[iii] Not getting enough sunlight can lead to weight gain as sunshine “supplies the important nutrient nitric oxide, which keeps your metabolism running smoothly and discourages binge eating.” Adults who do not get enough sunlight can experience muscle and bone aches because “nutrients like calcium and collagen” are not functioning properly due to a lack of Vitamin D. They can suffer from insomnia due to low levels of Vitamin D, and even become more susceptible to illness. “When sunlight hits your eyes it activates your autonomic nervous system, which signals the release of immune cells. Having immune cells readily available to fight off viral and bacterial infections is what allows us to encounter pathogens without getting sick.”[iv]

Yet, most people enjoy the physical benefits of sunlight without realizing they are even benefiting from the sun. They do not see the effects sunlight is having on and inside their bodies at the cellular level and so many do not realize how important sunlight is to them. If they are healthy, they think it must be because they are eating right and exercising. If they are not healthy, they need to improve their diet and exercise. In other words, because we cannot see or feel the positive impact sunlight has on our bodies, we tend to undervalue and underappreciate sunlight and, thus, tend to neglect the importance of spending time in it.

The same can be said about God’s Word. Christians will often go through life not reading their Bibles daily and life will be hard. Life is riddled with trials and tribulations. Around every corner is a new obstacle. Life does not go as planned. Dreams are often unfulfilled. And so, they will get into God’s Word. They will read and memorize scripture. Engage in regular Bible study, and life is still hard. It is riddled with trials and tribulations. Around every corner is a new obstacle. Life does not go as planned. Dreams are often unfulfilled.

Then what’s the point? Why soak up copious amounts of God’s Word when we don’t see or feel the positive effects of being in the light of God’s Word? But like sunlight, spending lots of time in the light of God’s Word, immersing ourselves in God’s Word, can have enormous positive effects at the spiritual level, which also cannot be easily seen just as we cannot easily see the positive effects of sunlight at the cellular level—but it is happening. Thus, here are seven reasons we should bask in the light of God’s Word at every given opportunity.

Knowing and Enjoying God

The 17th century French philosopher, Blaise Pascal, said, "All men seek happiness. This is without exception. Whatever different means they employ, they all tend to this end. The cause of some going to war, and of others avoiding it, is the same desire in both, attended with different views. They will never take the least step but to this object. This is the motive of every action of every man, even of those who hang themselves." Without a doubt this is true. Even among those who commit suicide, do so because they believe they would be happier dead than alive. Yet, we look around at the world and we see misery everywhere. This is because men and women are seeking their happiness in all the wrong places. They are seeking their happiness in the things of this world, things which are temporal and fleeting. Thus, another great thinker, the 18th century minister and theologian, Jonathon Edwards, said that “the enjoyment of God is the only happiness with which our souls can be satisfied. To go to heaven, fully to enjoy God, is infinitely better than the most pleasant accommodations here.”

Edwards is basing his assertion on passages of scripture like Psalm 16:11, “in your presence [God] there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Psalm 21:6, “For you make him most blessed forever; you make him glad with the joy of your presence.” What both Edwards and the psalmist understood is that there is nothing more perfect and more complete than God. Thus, to gaze upon God, to gaze upon his beauty, is to gaze upon and experience perfect and complete joy. This is the reason people will stand and stare at an exquisite piece of art for hours or stand in front of a large tropical fish tank for extended periods of time or look at a portrait of a tranquil landscape scene and not want to put it down. Because when we find something that brings us joy, happiness, and peace, we want to keep enjoying it for as long as we can.

There is nothing more joyful, more peaceful, and more happy than God. And God perfectly revealed himself in the person of Jesus Christ. To know the joy and peace and happiness of God is to know Christ in all his fullness. Jesus, the Son of God, is the Word of God (John 1:1). He is the fullest and most complete expression of who God is. Thus, if you want more joy, peace, and happiness in life, then immerse yourself in the words of God; immerse yourself in the Word of God.

Knowing God’s Will for Our Lives

Many Christians spend much of their time wondering what God’s will is for their lives. They can lose sleep over this, wracked with anxiety. All the while God’s will for their lives is made plain in scripture. “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law” (Deut. 29:29). The “things that are revealed” in God’s Word “belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law,” that we might know what God desires of us and strive to live it out.

God’s Word tells us that everything we need to know for “life and godliness,” that is, for living life in this world and for preparing for the next world, for progressing in our sanctification, comes “through the knowledge of Him who called out of darkness into his marvelous light” (2 Peter 1:3). Whether you are struggling in your parenting, in your marriage, with your coworkers or with friends and family, whether you are struggling with managing your finances, managing your temper, or managing your time, God’s Word provides all the answers you need.

In the end, it all boils down to this: “For this is the will of God, your sanctification” (1 Thess. 4:3). That’s it. That’s what God’s will is for every believer, to pursue becoming more like Christ, to strive to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” and strive to “love your neighbor as yourself” (Matt. 22:37-39). This may seem over simplistic, but doing the right thing, making wise decisions, often comes down to asking ourselves, ‘In this moment, in this decision, what will bring the most glory to God? What will be most pleasing to God? What will be the most loving thing to do for the other person?’

Becoming Like Christ

Scripture tells us that Christ left us “an example, so that you might follow in his steps” (1 Pet. 2:21), that God redeemed us in order “to be conformed to the image of his Son” (Rom. 8:29), and the apostle Paul exhorts believers to “be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. (1 Cor. 11:1). Christians are called to live as Christ lived, speak as Christ spoke, serve as Christ served, and love as Christ loved. But we cannot live like Christ if we do not first learn to think as Christ thought. We must have the mind of Christ. And the only way to do that is to immerse yourself into the stories and teachings of Christ, to learn what the apostles understood and learned from Christ, and to know what the Old Testament scriptures said about Christ and how they pointed forward to him.

It is no secret that successful Hollywood actors, when they are preparing to play the role of an historical figure, will often read biographies on the historical person. They may visit museums to learn about them or may even visit their hometown, all in an effort to get inside the head of the person they will be portraying on the big screen. They do this because they understand that if they are going to accurately portray this person, they must get inside their mind. They must learn to think like the person if they are going to act like the person. How much more important to get inside the mind of Christ, our Lord and Savior, who bled and died for our redemption. To live like Christ, we must think like Christ. To think like Christ, we must immerse ourselves in the Word of Christ.

Having Our Souls Nourished and Our Faith Strengthened

When Jesus had been fasting in the wilderness for forty days, the devil comes to him saying, ‘You know what you need? You need bread. You look hungry, so you should command these stones to become bread.’ Jesus responds by citing Old Testament scripture, “Man does not live by bread alone but by every word which proceeds from the mouth of God” (Deut. 8:8; Matt 4:4). In other words, living—real living—does not come from physical food but by feeding on God’s Word. And Jesus is God’s Word. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” and “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (Jn. 1:1, 14).

Jesus did not just speak words from God—he is the Word of God. He is the perfect and quintessential self-revelation of the invisible God. He is, as Jesus said, “the bread of God…who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world…This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever” (Jn. 6:33, 50-51). Real living and real life, strength to carry on and push through the struggles of this world, peace and joy in the midst of suffering and pain, consistent happiness within the eye of life’s storms, comes from feeding on Christ. Not from feeding on his flesh, as Roman Catholics mistakenly think, but prayerfully coming to Christ through his Word. Feeding on his Word daily and immersing yourself in the light of Christ.

Being Encouraged by the Past

Scripture tells us that “whatever was written in former days [the OT] was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope” and that “these things happened to them [OT people of God] as an example, but they were written down for our instruction” (Rom. 15:4; 1 Cor. 10:11). As we read through the scriptures and we see the trial and struggles they dealt with, and how God brought them through, these stories give us hope and encouragement. When we struggle with clinging to our faith in a world of ridicule, we are encouraged by Noah, who build a boat the size of an aircraft carrier in the middle of nowhere because God told him to. When we struggle with trusting God in the midst of life’s storms, we are encouraged by Peter doing what made no earthly sense when he stepped out of the boat onto the water, believing that if he kept his eyes on Christ, he could do the impossible. When we are struggling with God meeting our needs, buried in medical bills, wondering how we’re going to put food on the table, we find hope in the story of Jesus feeding five thousand people with two fish and five loaves. When we struggle with grievous sins over and over again, our spirits are uplifted by the redemption we read in Psalm 51 and the story of Jesus restoring Peter after he had denied Christ three times (John 21:15-19). God’s Word is filled with thousands of years of stories designed to remind us of the amazing faithfulness, goodness, love, and mercy of God. Immerse yourself into God’s Word and be encouraged.

Being Prepared for Spiritual Battle

When Jesus did battle with the devil in the wilderness, three times the devil came at him with a different tactic, and three times Jesus repelled him by quoting Deuteronomy. Jesus sets the example of what is to be the believer’s weapon of war—God’s Word. The truth of God’s Word is the one thing Satan cannot defend against. This is because “the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword” (Heb. 4:12), and Satan has no defensive weapon which can stand against it. For this reason, when the apostle Paul reminds us that we are constantly in a state of war “against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12), he exhorts us to take up “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Eph. 6:13, 17). In other words, since the Word of God is the offensive weapon we are to wield against the devil, the world, and our own sin, we cannot use scripture as a weapon of warfare if we do not know scripture. The psalmist encapsulates this point well when he wrote to God, “I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you” (Ps. 119:11). If you struggle with sin, if you struggle with temptations, if you struggle with killing the old self which dwells within you, then store up God’s Word in your heart. A soldier cannot expect to use his weapon in combat effectively if he does not train with and handle his weapon regularly.

Knowing the Truth and Being Set Free

In the opening words to his gospel, John the disciple, says of John the Baptist, “He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world” (1:8-9). Jesus will then later say to his Jewish audience, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (Jn. 8:32). Jesus, the Word of God, the Son of God, is the Light of the world, the truth that sets men free. Thus, only as we spend time in the Son’s light can we be set free from the lies of this world, the lies of false teachers, and the lies we tell ourselves. And the more time we spend absorbing the Son’s light, the easier this becomes. For all “Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Tim. 3:16). Everything we need to know the truth, to dispel the lies, and to be truly free is found in the pages of God’s Word. It is for this reason that Paul heavily leaned on God’s Word as the source of his authority. “For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God” (2 Cor. 10:4-5). Previously, in his first letter that he wrote to the church in Corinth, he reminded them that he did not come to them “with lofty speech or wisdom” but armed only with the Word of God and the Gospel of Christ (1 Cor. 2:1-2).

Hence, spend as much time as you can absorbing and basking in the light of God’s Word, taking in lots of Son-light, pouring over Scripture, knowing that even if you cannot always see or feel the benefits of it, the benefits are taking place on a spiritual level. Whether you realize it or not, your soul is being nourished, your faith is being strengthened, your spirit is being encouraged, and you are being guided and instructed by the Holy Spirit through God’s Word.

Photo by Kasuma

[i] Ryan Raman, “How to Safely Get Vitamin D From Sunlight,” Healthline, April 4, 2023, https://www.healthline .com/nutrition/vitamin-d-from-sun.

[ii] Ibid.

[iii] Brooke Nelson, “6 Signs You’re Not Getting Enough Sunlight,” The Healthy, August 10, 2023, https://www. thehealthy.com/nutrition/not-getting-enough-sunlight/

[iv] Ibid.