The Best Part

From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the LORD is to be praised!

Have you ever taken a picture of a sunrise or sunset only to be left frustrated by the quality of the image? A photo can never fully do justice to the beauty we behold with our eyes.

On a trip to Big Sur, California, my husband, Greg, and I witnessed one of the most breathtaking sunsets I’ve ever seen. We were driving down the Pacific Coast Highway when the bright blue sky changed to magnificent shades of Creamsicle and coral. When I couldn’t capture a non-blurry image of the sky from our moving car, I started to feel panicky. I urged Greg to pull off the road so I could get a photo before the colors vanished. He swerved off at the next exit and pulled into a sandy parking lot. I jumped out of the car with our camera in hand, sprinting to the beach.

Every few steps, I’d stop and snap a few shots, afraid I would miss the best part. None of the pictures I took compared to the wispy watercolor clouds reflecting on the ocean waves. Click, click, click—I couldn’t stop taking pictures and recording videos as I tried in vain to catch the seagulls swooping in the sky, the fishing boats bobbing in the sea, and the rays of light streaming from the setting sun.

But I kept coming up short. After a few minutes, the sky darkened and its brilliant colors faded to deep indigo. We walked back to the car, emptied our shoes of sand, and continued the drive to our hotel.

As I flipped through the photos I’d taken, my heart sank. Instead of enjoying God’s masterpiece—the waves crashing before me, the infinite golden sand beneath my feet, and the colors of the sky—I had been consumed with trying to take the best picture. I had missed the best part.

In Psalm 113, a psalm of praise, the psalmist declares there is not a single moment in the day when God is not worthy of praise. Rather than attempt to capture or contain God’s greatness, the writer overflows with adoration. He begins his psalm with a declaration to praise the Lord and ends in the same posture of adoration. The sun follows the same pattern as it rises and sets each day, reminding us to begin and end our days with praise.

As we behold the beauty of God in Scripture and in creation, our hearts are sparked to praise his name, both now and forever. Every sunrise, every sunset beckons us to set aside distractions to enjoy the best part—praising our faithful, righteous, steadfast, glorious God.

When we root our lives in praise and fix our eyes on him, we won’t miss the best part, because the best part is knowing and praising him—no camera required.

Word before World We won’t miss the best parts in life when our eyes are set on beholding Jesus in the Word and glimpsing his grace in the world.

Grow in Grace Next time you see a sunrise, instead of grabbing your phone or camera to capture the moment, simply watch and praise God, who is faithful from the rising to the setting sun—and every moment in between.