It startled me wide awake from a deep sleep, with a low rumble that suddenly exploded in a violent blast of sound. After nearly a month without rain, a thunderstorm burst upon us with a much-needed soaking. Grass that had turned brown, crunching underfoot, suddenly sported new green duds, and the dust that just yesterday choked the lungs was settled, powerless to irritate.
The Scriptures speak often of life-giving rains that would transform the dry desert overnight into a wonderland garden of green. In Zechariah 10:1 we are told to "Ask the LORD for rain in the season of the late spring rains - the LORD who causes thunderstorms - and he will give everyone showers of rain and green growth in the field." This description of a regular occurrence of nature is a picture of God's design for our lives: "Sow righteousness for yourselves, reap unfailing love. Break up the unplowed ground for yourselves, for it is time to seek the LORD, until he comes and showers deliverance upon you" (Hosea 10:12).
It amazes me that what has been essentially dry and lifeless for so long can so suddenly burst forth in vibrant color of every hue. I would have imagined that after an extended drought it would take time for the green to gradually appear, but that's not the way it happens. One day everything is brown; the next, life. Which gives me hope. I've learned the pattern. I go through extended dry times, living in a spiritual desert, wondering how long before the Lord comes with showers of Holy Spirit blessings. My soul is dry, choked with dusty efforts and hope against hope. Then without warning, the rains come and I am revived. I am thankful tonight for the rain that watered the earth last night, and for the promise embedded within for the refreshing of my soul that shall surely come.
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