Yesterday we got some much needed rain here in the East Bay. We have had drought conditions (and still do) which is not typical for this neck of the woods.
As if trying to make us “feel like we were there”, the downpour rained on our parade (in a very good way!) as we watched our team (Yeah, Seahawks!) win (that’s not quite the right word for what happened yesterday…) the SuperBowl.
Having lived in different parts of the country, it’s interesting to see different people’s reactions to rain. When it rains in Arizona, for example, there is everything from sighs of relief to full on cheering when the clouds break open during monsoon season. Relief from 115 degree days. A kind of moisture for the soul and a reprieve for the body. But people aren’t sure how to maneuver in it on the roads and are more apt to dance in it than drive in it.
Our experience in Colorado was that people seemed to get irritated by the rain. Not everyone knows that even though it gets cold in Denver, there are 300 days of sunshine there. Clear, beautiful skies are the norm in that beautiful state. And with the snow that comes each year, most people there see the rain as unnecessary and more inconvenient.
Now in Northern California, land of the perfect climate, we understand the need for rain when we’ve experienced little to none in the past six months (with the exception of yesterday). They are talking about rationing around here, a thought no one wants to entertain but close to having to experience. Yesterday’s showers were an answer to prayer that needs to be an extended request.
And then we have our dear homeland of Seattle, Washington. Where rain gets its name. Where people function without umbrellas because they’re not afraid of getting a little wet. That place where people have learned to run to and from buildings and cars with children and groceries and have mastered the art of driving with liquid sunshine beating down on their windshields. The lack of visibility doesn’t stop them. The inconvenience doesn’t seem to phase them. They are accustomed to the rain. And while it might soak their hair and clothes, they don’t let it dampen their spirits. They can’t. Because rain in Seattle is inevitable. And if people are going to live there they are going to have to learn to live with it and at some level embrace it.
What about the rain of our lives? Those unexpected downpours that catch us unaware? The annoying drizzle that won’t seem to let up? The showers that leave us shivering and cold to the bone? How do we respond to the rain that life brings?
As many different personalities as there are on this planet, there are just as many different reactions to the trials and difficulties and frustrations that we face. Some of us can see (or at least understand), like current NoCal residents, that there is a purpose for the rain – a necessity even. Some of us become paralyzed like AZ drivers when a rainstorm hits, not sure how to maneuver through the flash flood on unprepared streets. Some of us merely see it as an annoyance, something that gets in the way of our every day lives – the Denver reaction. But what if we ALL saw the rain as Seattlites do? That it is inevitable but the source of the lush green that Washingtonians enjoy. Wouldn’t it be awesome to not be afraid of it, not dread it, but to take it as it comes and enjoy the beauty it produces? For every puddle that we step in, every splattered windshield, and every slippery sidewalk, there is also a multi-colored rainbow and a silver-lined cloud above. The key? Looking up.
Because when we look up to the One who allowed or even caused the rain, we feel a fresh splash on our faces of faith. If we open our “mouths” to it, we can find refreshment in the middle of a storm. Giant drops of blessing falling, even with thunder roaring in the background. We can put the umbrellas of avoidance down and learn to dance in that rain. Damp but not drowning. Drenched but not defeated. Soaked but not saturated.
As I enjoy this sunny day, I will not forget yesterday’s rain. Knowing that my grass will be a little bit greener from every drop that hit the ground…
Isaiah 43:2 – When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you…
2 Corinthians 4:8-10 – We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.
Philippians 4:12 – I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.
Romans 8:28 – And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a] have been called according to his purpose.
