Rain

I stood under the overhang of Lakeview Lodge and watched the rain come down this morning. It wasn't exactly the morning that the 256 guests would hope for as they gathered for breakfast. The comments were pretty typical. "I wish it would stop raining." "This stinks, where's the sunshine." and similar remarks.

As I looked out from my sheltered spot I watched the rain roll off the roof and onto the hanging baskets full of geraniums. They were blooming and beautiful as they drank in the moisture. I looked across the camp at the lush, thick undergrowth, the grass, the towering white pines, and the trees that are too numerous to count. Without the rain ... the flowers die, the grass in this fragile environment quickly shrivels, and there wouldn't be any of the majestic forest that is so special at Big Sandy Camp.

We don't like hardship in life. We don't like to struggle to pay the bills, work hard to raise our kids, and oh how we hate that common cold or even moreso the cancer. And yet the things we grumble about the most are often rain. We long for sunshine. We like our lives to be 75 degrees, low humidity, and not a cloud in the sky. But rain ... it brings life. It causes flowers to burst forth. It is necessary for an abundant life (John 10:10).

Think of those dear people that have come into your life who have struggled deeply and have kept the faith. Their flowers are brighter, their grass greener, their trees more spectacular because they have had rain. Some of my richest memories are with dear saints who were in their final days. Their temporal bodies were often wasted and shriveled but they were flowers that were brilliant and sweet ... for they had been in the rain.

Next time it rains ... leave the umbrella inside, run through the puddles, and dance ... for your God has sent the rain.