Sometimes gray funk clouds form out of nowhere, gather together… deepen and darken, overhead heavy, thickening—stall there.
I pray, sing hymns, give thanks, praise God, even plead, but none of this prevails to blow the gray away.
I ask a word, of cheer, of comfort, encouragement, strength, even of wisdom as to what’s made this storm.
And nothing. Just nothing.
So I wait. For wait I must.
Wait on Him. While rain comes, and clouds stay, and sky weeps.
Wait and watch and pray and hope. And do. one. thing. And then. do. another. And wait while I work or walk or whatever…
Still, the clouds. The rain.
But look! What do I see?
His light is shining in the west,
the clouds still hanging in the east.
The rain is raining in between…
That means…
And I watch a rainbow climb the sky.
Thanking God…
~for faith to continue when skies are gray.
~for rainbows amazing
~for clouds and rain that make them happen.
~for promises that go with rainbows.
~and joy that comes with light from heaven and glowing colors and clearing skies
Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun” (Ecc 11:7).And counting…
REASONS TO PRAISE GOD
(from Genesis 1, 2, 6, and 8):
- 470 – Because in the beginning His Spirit hovered over the waters before He even created earth.
- 471 – Because in the midst of those waters He made the firmament which He called heaven—and it was good.
- 472 – Because on the third day He gathered the waters under that firmament into one place, for dry land to appear, thus forming the seas. And this was good.
- 473 – Because on the fourth day He made sun and moon and placed them in relation to earth to rule its day and night, and to divide the light and the darkness. And one of these, the moon, would rule the tides, and keep them from overwhelming the land. And all this was also good.
- 474 – And God made the earth bring forth grass, and herbs, and trees, that drink in water from the earth, which gets that water from the skies.
- 475 – Because He made a garden, and for that garden He caused a mist of water to keep it alive and green.
- 476 – Because He made mankind to tend the garden and oversee His earth. And this was all very good.
- 477 – Because after man went wrong and sin multiplied to dreadful extent on the earth God had made, He did not let that sin prevail, but wiped it out with a flood.
- 478 – Because He then caused rain to fall, heavy torrents for forty days. And the water from the rain and from the fountains of the deep covered all the earth, even over its mountaintops.
- 479 – Because even so, He preserved mankind by saving Noah and his family, through the flood.
- 480 – Because after the flood and its terrible destruction, He caused a symbol of promise, a sign of His peace, to appear in the sky with earth’s rainstorms, a reminder that never again would He destroy the earth with a flood.
- 481 – Because that sign was a beautiful rainbow. A sign, always a sign, of His grace.
- 482 – Because Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.
- 483 – Because by that same grace I too am saved, because it’s a gift from God (Eph 2:8).
Thank you for sharing at Tell Me a Story. Yes, we do have gray days, and clouds and rain, but the promise is there and the rainbow reminds us of God’s abiding love.
I never ever thought about it before: that nature does indeed teach us that we must wait for the process to complete itself to see the rainbow. That if we give up in the gathering of the clouds or in the darkening or do not allow the rain or do not trust that the sun is indeed there and we must simply wait for its appearance, we never see the rainbow. In fact, if we don’t seek the rainbow, we may miss it completely even though it fills the sky. This is a powerful post. Thank you, Sylvia!
Hi Hazel,
I love being able to take part in Tell Me a (true) Story. Thank you for the link-up — and the visit and comment. May God bless you in a special way today.
Yes, Dawn, exactly! I want the cheer, comfort, encouragement, strength or wisdom *right now* (petulant little kid that I sometimes still am), but how else but in the waiting, just hanging on, would I develop that “patience” that James says produces “its perfect work,” making me “entire, lacking in nothing”? And there are such lessons in His creation! You said it so well.
I saw a full arch rainbow on our way home from Sayre last night and got this in my email this morning. God is faithful to his promises…Dawn’s comment really makes the lesson clearer about the waiting for the process to complete before the rainbow appears…well said!
Dawn’s comment makes it clearer to me, too, Laurie! I just saw God’s grace in the rainbow. Period. And melted in thanks.
Those rainbows do speak, don’t they?
God is so amazingly faithful! Love the rainbows 🙂
Oh, I love rainbows! They are so beautiful – and represent such a wonderful promise! The story, too, was excellent. Reminds me of how I’ve been feeling lately. Thank you for sharing this hope and encouragement!
Beautiful post! Really encouraging. I agree with Dawn.
Well, you certainly made me grin and rejoice. As for the high percentage of the world population, I’m a big rainbow fan. The colors always make me rejoice inside and out.
Thank you much.
Yes, Kathleen. These little well-timed happenings just fill me with delight and gratitude. Thanks for visiting and commenting.
So glad this encouraged you, Mary. It certainly lifted me! What a God we have, meeting us in our weakness like He does!
So happy to see you visiting and commenting, Wendy. It’s a joy to share an experience like this and find it encouraging others as it encouraged me. God bless!
oh, rainbows are such gifts of promise. When I see them I am reminded so much of how faithful God is. Thankful to be seeing your rainbows today.
It surely made me grin, too, Joanne. This rainbow was one of the longest lasting I’ve seen. It kind of morphed from one shape and size and place to another as the sun set, but that color climbing the sky was really a thrill to watch. What a display of God’s wonder! How He delights the sons and daughters of man!
Hi Jen! So good to get a visit from you. Rainbows can really light up our hearts, can’t they? I’m sure God put that potential delight in human hearts ahead of time, long before He even set the first rainbow in the sky. I always think God’s faithfulness, too, and grace! Blessings to you.