Rethinking Rain

For the longest time, I have felt like I have been in a spiritual desert.  Dry, dry, dry.  I have felt alone in my wanderings through this particular wilderness despite the (much cherished) encouragement, love and support of family and friends.  I have felt distance between God's heart and mine, even though I know his word tells me otherwise...and while I believe his word, my heart has certainly felt differently.  

From my own perspective, I have been waiting (and waiting and waiting) for the proverbial rain to start.  For the experience of rich, refreshment of spirit and soul that only comes from Above to just start pouring down over my life again bringing along with it new growth, fresh life, renewal, clarity...  I have had in my mind vivid images of this waiting, this preparing for the spiritual spring rains in a season of personal drought and winter of my soul.  And in my mind, that "working while I wait" has kept me going with purpose because in my mind, all will become better when the rains start falling and I want to be ready...

As I am working on looking at my life with fresh perspective, I felt a nudge to ponder how maybe the rain is already falling down around me and I just have not had the eyes to see it.  Maybe instead of dry, I have actually been wet.  Perhaps my struggles in the wilderness with these life "storms" I've been experiencing over the past year have actually been drops of rain that have managed to settle into a steady, stormy downpour and I am just in need of a really good umbrella and a fresh perspective.

I don't know if there is a "right" way to look at it, because honestly, both perspectives feel 'true' to me here in this moment.  The only notable difference for me is that one perspective was not on my heart yesterday the way it is today, and I wanted to spend some time writing about it while the nudge was fresh.  Either way, I know that God is always the redeemer of rain in our lives...whether he brings it upon the dry deserts of our hearts and uses it for our good (growth, restoration, life sustaining, healing) or floods our lives in effort to drown out our pride, hard hearts, self-reliance and stubbornness in his desire to draw us closer to Him...and prepare us for where He wants us to go.   He is our only safe shelter in life's storms.  Like the song by Mercy Me says, if that's what it takes to praise you (and if I may add, bring my heart closer to You), Jesus bring the rain.

May our hearts be encouraged, it only rains for a season.