Bad Theology?

This morning before leaving the house I was telling Bart that I had decided that I was going to use the words to the song "So let the sun shine in" as a blog post and I read the words to him.  He said that it was filled with bad theology and wanted to discuss whether or not the devil was omnipresent.  I'm thinking "I ain't got time for all that...." but I participated for a while in the conversation.  Then I decided to let it all go and use the song with bad theology.  It makes me smile, reminds me of my childhood and makes a valid point that I just realized when I was thinking about it last night.

Here are the lyrics (bad theology and all):

Mommy told me something 

a little kid should know. 

It's all about the devil 

and I've learned to hate him so. 

She said he causes trouble 

when you let him in the room. 

He will never ever leave you 

if your heart is filled with gloom. 

So let the sun shine in 

face it with a grin. 

Smilers never lose 

and frowners never win. 

So let the sun shine in 

face it with a grin 

Open up your heart and let the sun shine in. 

When you are unhappy, 

the devil wears a grin 

But oh, he starts to running 

when the light comes pouring in 

I know he'll be unhappy 

'Cause I'll never wear a frown 

Maybe if we keep on smiling 

He'll get tired of hanging 'round. 

If I forget to say my prayers 

the devil wears a grin. 

But he feels so awful awful 

when he sees me on my knees 

So if you're full of trouble 

and you never seem to win, 

Just open up your heart and let the sun shine in. 

So let the sun shine in 

face it with a grin. 

Smilers never lose 

and frowners never win. 

So le the sun shine in 

face it with a grin 

Open up your heart and let the sun shine in.

I know ... the theology doesn't always make sense.   But here was my realization as I laid awake unable to sleep last night.

I have been going back and forth as to how much we can really choose joy and if there are sometimes and some situations in which we really can't choose.  But I'm landing on the side that says that we make deliberate choices on what to focus on, what to allow to permeate our thinking, how were respond to what comes our way.   And when we let the enemy in the room and fill our hearts with gloom, and remain unhappy, and wear a frown, and forget to say our prayers.... we give the enemy a foothold.

And when we just let that sun shine in ... or we could spell it another way ... let the SON shine in, it's hard for darkness and light to be in the same place.

The picture above was taken yesterday morning just a day after this one.  The sun was so bright that I could barely look at it and my phone camera couldn't capture it's intensity.   It was behind the clouds the day before ... and the suddenly BOOM it's there bright and strong.

Maybe it's bad theology that the devil is omnipresent in our lives, but it certainly is truth that we can make conscious choices to recognize the sun when it's there and to open the doors of and windows of our dark places and let it in.

At least that's how I see it.  And apparently Pebbles and Bam Bam Feel the same way!