Benefit of the rain

One morning there was a gray, cloud filled sky. You could see the wind rushing through the trees and hear an occasional clap of thunder. It looked like it could be a little scary. From the perspective of my 5-year-old son it was scary enough to get his trusted stuffed hippo to hold on to. I didn't like my son being scared but I looked outside and saw puddles in our wet driveway that were rippling from the rain. My heart was filled with joy. There's been a drought in our area of the country all summer. When you add in the nonstop triple digit temps the fields were not looking good. There's been growing concern about grocery prices and the many other ways this would effect us all in the near and distant future. Seeing the rain fall was like drops of hope in my heart. Yet I looked next to me and there was my little boy, his heart filled with concern and fear because of the possible storm that was brewing. I realized the benefit of the rain far outweighed my son's fear of the storm.

This reminds me of us Christians when we see a storm or a possible storm brewing. Quite honestly I'm going through this right now. I see a couple of storms or possible storms brewing on my horizon now. I'm looking at the Lord saying, “I really don't want to do this. Can you just make it go away?” I know He can but is that what's best for me. Maybe I need what's in that storm. It never sounds pleasant to go through a challenging circumstance but there could be benefit in it. One benefit I can see is learning to cling to the One who deserves our full trust, God. Instead I find myself fearing and stewing. That's a big flag to me to refocus back on Jesus, the author and perfecter of my soul.

Is my Heavenly Father right next to me? You bet He is. Is He going to protect me? Yes, just like I would protect my son if a true threat of harm came. But the storm that morning was not a true threat of danger. It only sounded scary. So I comforted him best I could, just as I have felt the Lord comforting me through the verses I've been reading in my quiet time lately. Divine timing on those verses! Yet, I need to come to that place that whether this is a true storm or just sounds scary I can trust God completely and have no fear in me. I'm not at that point yet, but I hope to be soon. Then I'll be able to do as my son did when he no longer heard the thunder. He sat his hippo on the couch and announced he wasn't afraid anymore.

So if you're in a similar situation remember that maybe the benefit of what you'll receive in this storm may far outweigh the fear or long suffering your having to deal with.

Oh, and if you think about it, I would appreciate your prayers.