Are you scorching under one of life’s trials today?

Is the heat of parenting making you crispy around the edges?

Are the searing rays of cancer, aging, or other health concerns singeing your skin and sapping your strength?

Allow me to lift the umbrella of God’s shade over your heat-stroked head.

I never understood why people carried umbrellas on sunny days until I moved to the South. Umbrellas used to be called parasols and were quite the fashion statement a hundred years ago. Made of cloth and edged with ruffles, parasols served a purpose beyond style. They protected a woman’s skin from the damaging effects of the sun and kept her body from overheating. 

I’ve never seen someone carrying a parasol, but I do occasionally see someone carrying an umbrella when the sun’s shining. 

After forty-plus years of southern living, I totally get it. The sun in South Carolina can be merciless in the summer. It can be pretty intense in the fall and spring too. Shade of any kind (even the Mary-Poppins-black-umbrella-type) can make a ten-degree difference in body temperature. 

Parasols, Umbrellas, and Shade

I thought about parasols, umbrellas, and shade recently as I drove south on I-77. The sky was clear and the sun shone brightly. My left arm, resting in a patch of sunlight, felt like a marshmallow roasting on the end of a stick—until an eighteen-wheeler carrying Sweet Baby Ray’s barbecue sauce drove up beside me. It moved between me and the hot afternoon sun and cast its long shadow over my car.

The temperature inside the car dropped instantly. The glare eased, and my toasted marshmallow arm stopped sizzling. I sighed as the soothing shade cooled everything it touched. 

The Refreshing Power of Shade

The refreshing and restorative power of shade isn’t new. David the psalmist/shepherd wrote about it in Psalm 121. He knew what it was like to sit for hours in the Judean sun, watching his sheep graze. He also knew the value of a well-placed shade tree or drifting cloud. Perhaps this is why he described God as “the shade at your right hand.” 

Listen to his words: 

I lift up my eyes to the hills.
   From where does my help come?
My help comes from the LORD,
   who made heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot be moved;
   he who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, he who keeps Israel
   will neither slumber nor sleep.

The LORD is your keeper;
   the LORD is your shade on your right hand.
The sun shall not strike you by day,
   nor the moon by night.

The LORD will keep you from all evil;
   he will keep your life.
The LORD will keep
   your going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore. (Psalm 121 ESV)

What a beautiful picture of God. 

The Shade of His Presence

When the glare of circumstances distorts our perspective, the shade of His presence enables us to see with clarity. When the heat of trials threatens to incinerate us, God’s presence cools the flames. When the blazing rays of difficulty beat down upon our heads, God positions himself between us, refusing to let them consume us. 

If you’re melting under the heat of a fiery trial right now, let God be your sunshade. 

Allow Him to refresh you by spending time in His Word. 

  • Read the Psalms for encouragement.

  • Note the attributes of God and allow them to encourage and strengthen you.

  • Search for principles you can apply to your situation.

Rest under the protective canopy of prayer. 

  • Begin with praise, recounting the attributes of God you find in His Word.

  • Share your pain, hurt, fear, and confusion with God, your loving Father.
  • Declare your trust in Him despite your circumstances. 
  • Ask Him to strengthen your faith.

Take refuge in the shadow of His presence, knowing that He watches over you.

  • Run to God in your heart. Picture yourself climbing into the Father’s lap and feeling His arms around you.

  • Determine to go to God, not others, when danger threatens your peace.
  • Memorize Psalm 56:3 and speak it aloud whenever you feel scared: “When I am afraid, I will trust in you.”

I rode in the shade of the Sweet Baby Ray truck for miles until the interstate took me west and the heat of the sun eased. As my escort and I parted, I thanked the Lord for a tangible reminder of the way He cares for His children. 

And I vowed to seek out the shade of His presence instead of stubbornly navigating the scorching highways of my life without Him.

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