Rain

It's raining outside today.  Big, round drops of precious water.  The air smells of earth and rain and of the crops that are maturing nearby.  It is cool and the sound is quiet, steady... soothing.  The cloud-shadow makes things look a little flatter, a little less distracting, a little less harsh.

I love the rain, love to stand outside with my arms open to the heavens, letting it wash over my face.  Years ago, I was given a key to one of the churches on our town.  The pastor has since retired, so I no longer use that key.  But, especially during the 18 months of serious trial and hurt and fear that I've so recently come out of, that key was so important to me.  The moments of peace were almost impossible to find then, but sometimes... sometimes they were there.  Late at night, when the rest of the town was sleeping, I would go to that church.  That Pastor and his wife were my "parents" in high school.  I know their church as well as I know their home.  I would silently open and close the door, locking it behind me.  I'd walk on soft carpet through the darkness, up the stairs and through the narrow hallway, out into the sanctuary.  I'd turn the sound system off, and I would sit down at the piano.  The light from streetlamps or the moon always made just enough light to see by, filtered through the stained glass and gentle.  I would play softly, listening as the music resonated and grew around me. 

I would pray, I would cry for mercy, for hope, for healing.  Mostly for forgiveness.  And in the darkness, in the quiet, He would touch my heart.

And then I'd hear the sound of rain.  It would start imperceptibly quiet and slowly build until it was a rushing roar that surrounded me like air.

In the Old Testament, when the people really, really messed things up, God withheld the rain.  If you want examples, I would be happy to send you a list.  They are there though - Genesis, Leviticus, Deuteronomy, 1 and 2 Kings, 1 and 2 Samuel, and so on.  When the people sinned and God was angry, it did not rain.

But in Genesis, chapter 49, verse 25, it says "Your father's God helps you.  God Almighty blesses you.  He blesses you with rain from above..."  Psalm 68, verses seven and eight:  "When you, God, went out before your people, when you marched through the wilderness, the earth shook, the heavens poured down rain, before God, the one of Sinai, before God, the God of Israel."

And as the rain fell, I knew He was near.  As close to me as the air I was breathing, and mightier than every storm on the earth, My God was there. 

For me, when the rain comes down, it reminds me of God's love.  Of His mercy, His forgiveness, His grace.  It reminds me that even when I've done wrong, He is ready and mighty to save.  And my heartfelt cries, they do not go unanswered and unheard.  The Lord of All hears and answers.

And the rain falls down.