A Rainy Day

I was sitting on my covered deck earlier in the week watching it rain. It was cool but comfortable outside and I was enjoying a time of prayer. I looked over at our gravel driveway and could see weeds poking up in front of the garage and happened to notice how very green they were. I felt that God wanted me to learn something from this so I asked Him to show me what it was.

First of all, I feel that I am someone who needs the sun. When it is rainy, especially for more than a day, I am down physically as well as in spirit. I find myself wishing it were sunny all the time. God reminded me, however, that it is the combination of the rain and the sun that make those weeds in front of my garage as well as the grass and the plants green and fertile. If it were sunny all the time the grass would become dry and brown, as opposed to the green soft carpet it was meant to be. It is the same in our daily lives. The stormy times in our lives combined with the sunny times keep us green and fertile as well.

My devotional from the other day said, "Much of the world's beauty is due to clouds. The unchanging blue of a beautiful, sunlit sky still does not compare to the glory of changing clouds. And the earth would become a wilderness if not for their ministry to us. Human life has its clouds as well. They provide us with shade, refresh us, yet sometimes cover us with the darkness of night." I may not like the rain but it serves a purpose in my life to keep me green and growing. God's word says in Isaiah 45:8 "You heavens above, rain down righteousness; let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness grow with it; I, the Lord have created it." The Lord created the rain and everything God has created is for a good purpose even when it does not make sense to us or does not seem pleasant. So let's praise God for the rain as well as the sun and the great purpose they serve in our lives.

Love in Christ,
Kim Ratcliffe