Rain, Rain, Go Away!

Do you remember singing the song, “Rain, rain, go away.  Come again another day….” when you were in elementary school?  These past few days I’ve found myself singing it over and over in my head.  I can tolerate just about any type of weather, but I don’t like it when it rains.  It’s messy.  Dogs and people tend to track wet feet through the house leaving a trail behind them. Umbrellas never seem to fully shield you from it and it makes driving more difficult.

However, there are some great benefits to rain we don’t readily see.  Rain brings the water table up so we don’t have to worry about drought. Rain waters the grass and the plants so spring and summer thrive with vegetation. Rain brings the water levels up in our streams and lakes which is good for things that live in the lakes and streams. It also keeps the lakes at a water level where it’s possible to go boating, skiing and other fun things.

The same happens when God.  We experience something in life that isn’t pleasant or is downright uncomfortable and we don’t understand why we have to walk through it. We whine or complain about it, failing to take into consideration the unseen benefits.

God loves us and He’s for us.  He has great plans for each one of us [Jeremiah 29:11].  He doesn’t sit around and drum up ways to make our lives miserable.  That’s the other guy [John 10:10].  God is working things together for our good [Romans 8:28].  Even when we can’t see the purpose in what’s happening, we can trust He has one. Isaiah 55:8 says,

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD.

Is there something going on in your life you’d prefer to avoid right now? Ask the Lord to reveal its purpose or at the very least, give you the grace to walk through it. He will. You can count on it.