Rain and Reign

RAIN! In the midst of a drought, we cherish the soft slapping of rain hitting the windows and the smell of the musty, damp earth after the rain.
This morning during a rare thunder storm, we watched as Caleb and Josh, bare-headed and coat-less, walked down the drive to check out what has been a dry creek bed all summer. On their way back, they stopped by the house, drenched to the skin. Dramatically pulling off their rain boots and dumping pints of water on the concrete porch, they gave us an extended “creek report.” Yes, there was water running over the bridge and the creek that had been bone-dry was running in torrents through the large tubes. A little. Their report was cut short by Mama Sara, worried because they had been gone so long, arriving from across the road in the Honda Pilot to usher them back to home school. This had been an extended recess for them.

Oh, the fickleness of man! We trust God for the rain, but we complain to Him about the drought. This morning in my time with Scripture, I was reminded that it is all at the Lord’s bidding or allowance.

And that gets me back into the see-saw of man’s responsibility vs. God’s sovereignty. Ultimately, I know that God has control of the seasons, the climate, and in all of that, our personal lives. As I walk across the dry parched land doing my chores, I plead with God for rain. When the rain finally comes, I thank God.

God is in control . . . oh, blessed thought. Even in our government!  I find encouragement in what Gamaliel said to the Council in Jerusalem who was threatened with the apostles preaching and wanted to kill them. “My advice is to let them alone.  If what they teach is of God, you will not be able to stop them, lest you find yourselves fighting even against God” (Acts 5:19)

I find comfort in God’s sovereignty: the rain that waters the earth and the reign of man.