What a rainy day in Georgia! The forecast for today, and for the entire state of Georgia is rain. As I look out of my window to watch the rain falling down, I can hear my grandmother’s voice saying, “Look, it’s raining cats and dogs.” The rain is falling heavily and the clouds are displaying many shades of gray. Those gray clouds with that rain appear to have danced straight through my window, and hovering above my head. I can hear myself praying, “Lord, the rain is falling hard on me today.” Have you ever felt this way? That you can’t see the sun because of the rain in your life.
Those cloudy skies are dancing around you, sending different levels of precipitation. At times it rains so hard that the moisture feels as though it is moving with an upward motion directly from the clouds. At times the rain bursts through the thunder clouds that have organized into narrow rain-bands. Then it comes with an effect that leads to increased rainfall, both in amount and intensity. Sometimes the movement is so fierce and prolonged, that you would think that it's monsoon season.
In this rainy season of our lives, the rain seems never ending. We experience the drizzle, then a sprinkled, then a study flow of rain, to a tornado, or hurricane, then it continues like a monsoon.
When it seems like I don’t have the power to go any further, it starts raining and this means that I am now in a “testing season." I am being put through the test. Doubts, failures, distrust, are like a constant flow of rain, falling down upon me.
Then the rain continues to pour down upon me disappointments, bereavement, suffering, like a monsoon. When the clouds breaks, with hope that the rain is ending, here comes the drizzle of rain, sprinkling some guilt, anger, and afflictions. These rains in my life makes my heart quiver with its intensity. This rain of affliction is surely beating me down.
But as I look toward heaven and call upon my heavenly Father, and beg for mercy, suddenly something happens. The sun peeks through the clouds. Yes, it is still raining, but God has allowed the gray clouds to dissipate. I no longer see doom and gloom, and gray cloudy skies, with sadness. Yes, it’s still raining, but God has allowed me to refocus, and just focus on Him. It’s raining, on me, but now it’s raining blessings. For I believe the words of my Father, “for God hath caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction” Genesis 41:52.
Although the rain has beaten down on me, with my spiritual eyes, I can see beautiful flowers springing up. With those flowers comes a very special fragrance. From the fragrance, unmatched beauty. How could something like this happen in this stormy life of mine? No storm, no flowers! More storms, more flowers! Yes, you see the rain, but please allow God to open your eyes to see the flowers that are breaking open for you.
The rain that was afflicting you, is now raining down love, peace, patience, compassion, gentleness, kindness, joy and a thousand other flowers from the blessed Spirit of God, through a spiritual enrichment.
There is no sunshine without any rain!
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