Let It Rain

For those of you who don't live in the Bay Area of California, you may not be aware that we are in a drought.  We have a rainy season which lasts from November through April and after that, rain is very scarce.  We have been experiencing the driest winter on record.  We would need twenty one inches of rain before June to get back to normal levels of rainfall.  There is a lot of concern because there isn't a big snow pack yet in the Sierra mountains, which affects the water available for the valley and Los Angeles.  The governor declared an emergency, people prayed for rain and others said the drought was punishment from God.  Well, this past weekend, the rains came.  God sent wonderful rain that came down at a gentle pace and soaked into the ground.  Some areas received as many as eleven inches of rain in the past five days.  This doesn't end our need for more rain, but it does alleviate some of the fears of a prolonged drought.

This made me think about what the Bible says about rain, so I looked up a few passages that I want to share with you.  So here they are:

Job 5:10 - "He bestows rain on the earth;  He sends water upon the country side."  God does control the weather.  He can bring rain or He can make the rain stop.  He is still the Sustainer of the universe.

In God's response to Job, He says this in 38:25:  "Who cuts a channel for the torrents of rain and a path for the thunderstorm?"  God confronts Job with the knowledge that God alone can bring rain.

Psalm 147:8 - "He covers the sky with clouds;  He supplies the earth with rain and makes grass grow on the hills."  This is a beautiful picture of God's provision.  He brings the rains that bring the crops which feed us.

Jeremiah 14:22 asks this wonderful question:  "Do any worthless idols of the nations bring rain?  Do the skies themselves send down showers?"  And then the passage gives this response:  "No, it is you, O Lord our God.  therefore our hope is in you, for you are the One who does all this"  Rain is a reminder to trust God and put your hope in Him.

Jesus speaks of rain in His sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5:45:  "He causes His sun to rise of the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and unrighteous."  Jesus is telling us to love all people, even our enemies.  God shows His love by allowing the rain to fall on all people, even those who despise or deny God.  If God is so loving and generous, then we should also.  There is only one instance in the Bible of the lack of rain being a judgment by God and that was foretold by Elijah.  So we must be careful in placing blame on God's judgment for natural events (Unless we have had word from Him that this is what He has done).



Isaiah 45:8 takes this idea of rain and transmits a different thought about rain.  "You heavens above, rain down righteousness;  Let the clouds shower it down   Let the earth open wide and let salvation spring up, let the righteous grow with it;  I, the Lord, have created it."  The call is for the followers of

God to live such righteous lives that righteousness is all around like the rain.  God desires His people to be beacons of hope and grace in a world of selfishness and sin.  He wants the world to see that the hope of the nations is not found in a government or riches or technology, but is found in the grace of God.  So let Christ shine through your choices today in such a way that others will be drawn to Him.

One of my favorite passages about rain is found in Matthew 7:24-27.  Jesus ends His sermon on the Mount by talking about two builders in the same storm.  That storm has rain, winds and floods which affect both builders.  One builder chooses to build on sand...bad choice.  The other builder chooses to build on THE rock...great choice.  The home on the sand is destroyed.  The home of THE rock stands through the storm.  Of course, Jesus is the rock.  What we do in His name and led by His Spirit will last.  What we do for ourselves (Even churchy stuff and spiritual stuff) won't last because we are only temporary.  So today, make the choice to build your life on the solid rock because all other ground is sinking sand.