Often times I think of rain as a negative. Through the years I have tried to remember that we need rain. When I was a little girl I did not like rain because it meant we could not play outside. Sometimes, now, I do not like rain because it may keep me from the beach. When I think a little past myself I do not like rain at times due to flooding. Growing up we would sing, "Rain, rain, go away. Come back another day." But truth be known, I would not like the next rain day either because it would, most likely, be an inconvenience! Still, I open the blinds in the morning and if it is sunny, it already brightens my day. I say something positive. If it is dreary or raining, I tend to think of a negative comment, all due to being influenced by external factors.
My thoughts on rain have really changed although I do find it to be an inconvenience for my desires at times. Rain helps us appreciate the sunny days! Rain washes the pollen away! Rain quenches the thirst of the plants and creatures. It gives the life in the desert the opportunity to quench their thirst for refreshing water. Isaiah 45: 8, "You heavens above, rain down my righteousness; let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness flourish with it; I, the Lord, have created it."
The rain provides nourishment so plants can produce new life. After a rain, I always go outside and look at my flowers. There is something different about God watering them! They grow and blossom. The rain softens the soil so you can plow it and seed it just as the rains come into our lives and purify and cleanse us. Just like the rainy and dreary seasons of my life! Next time I open the blinds I need to remember that. My faith should influence the circumstances of the day rather than be influenced by them. I should be thanking God for the blessings He will bring from the rain and the storms in my life...including this pandemic!
In the Old Testament, God's people, who lived in desert-like places thought a rainy day was a good day. Often in the Bible, rain is used as a metaphor for blessing. The Bible talks about blessings raining down on us. God blesses us in surprising ways, ways that don't always seem like a blessing. When the rains of difficulty come, we grow in Him. We find a new and deeper hope in Him. This happens because God loves us, not because he doesn't love us!
Psalm 1: 3, "That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers. When we strive for righteousness we find we are like trees planted by streams of water. We can be like the trees that bring forth fruit, trees whose leaves will not wither and trees who will prosper.
May God rain his blessings on you until you are drenched!
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