The Appearance

Ezekiel 1:28

Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. 

Have you seen a rainbow lately?  We see them a lot in the spring, where I live.  and I don’t’know a single person who doesn’t marvel and look at rainbows when they appear.  Children love them, adults stop and take pictures of them, and all over the earth people stop to look – because they don’t last for long.  But they’re absolutely beautiful.

This verse compares rainbows to the glory of the Lord.  It appears, it makes us gasp, it stirs our hearts, it causes us to pause and capture, and then it disappears…and reappears…and disappears…and reappears…

in every season when the clouds and rains come, and

it doesn’t emerge on cloudless days.

That’s something to think about.

Worthless

Jeremiah 14:22

Do any of the worthless idols of the nations bring rain? Do the skies themselves send down showers? No, it is you, Lord our God. Therefore our hope is in you, for you are the one who does all this.

Sometimes it’s vital that we remember where our blessings come from.  

Why?  

Because it makes us marvel, worship, give thanks, adore, and realize that all good things in life are blessings from his hand.

Some worship the creation, but we are to worship the creator.  And there’s a big difference.

The Lord our GOD is the one who “does all this” and it therefore stands to reason that we should place all of our hope in Him.

Next time it rains, look up and smile…and give thanks.

Let it Be

Isaiah 45

You heavens above, rain down my righteousness; let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness flourish with it; I, the Lord, have created it

Now that’s a perfect picture of how the earth ought to be:

The rain that falls is perfectly pure and right and good.

The earth receives it, and the people respond in faith and praise (salvation)

Righteousness flourishes (like blooming roses!)

Creation sings – because the Lord reigns!

Driving Rain

Proverbs 28:3

A ruler who oppresses the poor is like a driving rain that leaves no crops.

Another proverb about rain…there are lots of them!

Driving rain – you know the kind that comes down so hard that it uproots everything that’s planted.  And that’s sure disaster!  Our plants need soaking rain, that runs deep, not driving rain that pushes out.

Yet that’s what an oppressive ruler is like.

That’s what a provoking father is like.

That’s what a demanding unreasonable mom is like.

That’s what an overbearing boss is like.

Those over whom we rule come uprooted and run away downstream when we oppress them like driving rain…

And no fruit springs from the ground that we worked so hard to plant.

Leaky Roof

Proverbs 27

A quarrelsome wife is like the dripping of a leaky roof in a rainstorm;

Ugh, I don’t like this verse, but yet it’s so true. And I’m wondering if this is where the term “henpecked” originated.  A dripping leaky roof is a steady drip drip noise that can drive one crazy, like being pecked by a hen!

I’m thinking this is when we, the wives, constantly gripe and complain and push and prod about the same things over and over, trying to change him into what he’s not.

The only thing about that is that it never works.

If we want a change in our partner, we need to pray and let Him do the work, so that we free our partner from our constant barrage of complaints, in order to hear His voice.

It’s hard to pray and trust but we must.

Or else our leaky roof will become a rising flood that will drown us all…

Unexpected Rain

Proverbs 25

Like a north wind that brings unexpected rain is a sly tongue—which provokes a horrified look.

Gotta love the Proverbs…

Remember yesterday’s verse about a promise of rain but none falls?

Today’s verse is about an unexpected rain – one that is not anticipated or wanted – and yet it comes.

Those are the worst, aren’t they?  The cold driving rain in the winter, those blustery breezes that cut to the bone?

This verse compares that kind of rain to a sly tongue.  A sly tongue is a deceitful one.  And a deceitful tongue cuts like that driving north wind and rain – and chills to the bone.

It provokes a look of horror.

Another place in the scripture it says the tongue is a fire, no man can tame it.

But surrendering to him can make our words sweet and like honey, instead of sharp and like ice.

Never Given

Proverbs 25

Like clouds and wind without rain is one who boasts of gifts never given.

Wow, what a strong statement and a sobering one, too.

Isn’t is the most disappointing thing when we’ve planted our gardens and the sky looks promising for a good soaking rain, and yet the clouds roll right on by, and nothing falls?

This verse says those who boast of giving but never give – this includes what we boast of giving to HIM as well (like our time and resources) – are just like those clouds that look promising but fail to produce.

It’s better to give than to receive, we know that. But it’s also better to stay quiet and give in secret, than to boast about giving and do nothing at all.

The Supplier Song

Sing to the Lord with grateful praise; make music to our God on the harp. He covers the sky with clouds;  he supplies the earth with rain and makes grass grow on the hills.

When’s the last time you sang to the Lord in praise because he sends the clouds and the rain?  Most of the time we sing, it’s because we are thankful for his goodness to us, but it’s not usually in our minds to sing in thankfulness for rain…or is it?

Clouds build, then they spill, and we get rain. Rain falls, it soaks into the ground, and we get green.  It’s the process he has set into motion.  This process, this amazing God – our creator of all things good – sends rain in due season.

There used to be a kid’s song that had lyrics that said, “Standing in the rain with my mouth open wide…”

Open your mouth. 

Sing to him.

Thank him for the rain.

Make music in your heart.

For he is good.

Like Showers

Psalm 72 is another referral to those who rule well…

May he be like rain falling on a mown field, like showers watering the earth.

Have you ever raced to get your yard mowed only to be soaked before you ever got started?  And then rain keeps falling for days, and when the sun returns and things dry up, now your grass is so high you can barely push the mower? I’ve had that experience, and it’s irritating, because the yard looks awful and I can’t do a thing about it until the rain stops.

But…have you ever raced to mow your yard, finished and sighed, and THEN the rain fell?  Rain falling on a freshly mowed lawn is refreshing, satisfying, and beautiful, isn’t it?

That’s the parallel with ruling well, those whom God has set before us to care after.

We rule well, and it’s like rain that is welcome

We rule poorly, and it’s a mess and a chore

I think of parenting and how when we take care of things when they surface, and discipline well and in love, our kids see us in a loving light – a welcome rain.

But when we rule in haste, or let things go too long, and “weeds” begin to grow, it’s a hard thing to then rule well because of the denseness of the unwanted growth in our kids…

Something to think about!

Rule and Rain

II Samuel 23 says,

‘When one rules over people in righteousness, when he rules in the fear of God,

 he is like the light of morning at sunrise on a cloudless morning,

like the brightness after rain that brings grass from the earth.’

What are you a ruler over?  Your home?  Your office?  Your time?  Your health?  

There are many things we are given for which we are responsible for taking care of ruling well, including our families, co-workers, how we spend our time, how well we take care of our bodies, etc.

This verse says when one rules with God as his head, he is compared to:

The sunrise on a clear day

The new grass after a rain

Pretty cool picture. 

What do you think is the opposite?  Those who rule ruthlessly and selfishly end up being a dark cloud to those around them and not something or someone to be desired at all.

Ask God to help you rule under Him, as unto Him, in love and righteousness.

Like Rain

Deuteronomy 32:2 

Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants.

Did you know that the teaching, the wisdom, the truth of the Word is like rain into our hearts and minds?

And this verse says they are like dew – showers on new grass – and abundant rain on tender plants.

Each time I place a new plant in my garden, I have to water it well, so that the roots reach deep and start drinking right away.  And when I go too long without watering, the plant starts withering and looking dry and thirsty.

We are the same way.  We need drinks daily in order to grow in maturity in our relationship with Christ.

Read his word.  Open your heart to receive it, just like a freshly planted flower.  And see if you don’t take hold of a truth and emerge with color and grace as you bend toward the Son…

Ask Him

Zechariah 10:1

Ask the Lord for rain in the springtime; it is the Lord who sends the thunderstorms. He gives showers of rain to all people, and plants of the field to everyone.

Did you know that we can pray for rain…both physical and spiritual downpours?  It’s perfectly okay for we, his children, to pray and ask for what we need when things are dry and cracked and thirsty.

Sometimes, the rain comes with big claps of thunder.

Sometimes, the rain falls through streaks of light.

Sometimes the rain just falls gently for hours, soaking and seeping.

But all of the showers of blessing come from above…to produce plants…that stuff that we need to sustain us.

It’s springtime.  We need the rains now so that we can sustain life during the heat of the summer months to come.

God set up the seasons, and we can rest assured that he knows just what we need…when we need it…and when we ask he hears and sends showers of rain to everyone.

It's Time

Hosea 10:12

Sow righteousness for yourselves, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the Lord, until he comes and showers his righteousness on you.

HAPPY EASTER!

We celebrate our risen Savior, the Lord who loves us so much he died for us, conquered death, and now he lives to bring us life eternal with him…

Part of that living life with Him involves sowing, reaping, breaking up and seeking Him and his word and his ways.

We have to be careful what we plant in our yards if we don’t want to be taken over by weeds that just land there and are never uprooted.  Tending a garden teaches us some of the best life lessons, doesn’t it?

We should take care of what God has entrusted to us…always expecting those “showers” to come – his righteousness and holiness – that enable us to experience all that He is.

He is alive.  He is real.  He is LOVE.

Secure Showers

Ezekiel 34 says,

I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing. The trees will yield their fruit and the ground will yield its crops; the people will be secure in their land.

This is a promise from our Good Shepherd, the One who cares for his sheep.

There are false shepherds, men/women who say they’re concerned and care for others, but in reality they’re feeding their own desires and needs.

However, there’s the Good Shepherd that we are supposed to follow, the One who will send us rain when we need it and cause us to grow after the rains fall, and to live securely, unmoved by anything around us.

It’s comforting to know that when drought is present, rain is on the way.  And when floods are imminent, the sun is on its way.  And when nothing is in the field, fruit is being cultivated to grow.  And when fear is all around, security is ours.

No...

Jeremiah 14:22

Do any of the worthless idols of the nations bring rain? Do the skies themselves send down showers? No, it is you, Lord our God. Therefore our hope is in you, for you are the one who does all this.

We’ve come a long way – mankind.  But we haven’t figured out how to control the skies.  We can predict to the best of our abilities, but we often get it wrong.  We say it’s going to rain, and the sun shines.  And when we predict blue skies, sometimes a downpour occurs.

God is in control of the heavens – and he created all that’s up there – and he is our hope – our refuge – and our provider of showers.

We are not to worship the creation…but rather the One who created everything and set it all in motion.

When we do that, we see his character, his love, his power, and his organization and we rest.

Even when rains come when they are unwanted, we know He is at work doing something good.

And when rains comes that we’ve prayed for, we receive them with a glad heart.

It is YOU Lord – you are our hope – you are the One.

Refreshed!

Psalm 68:9

You gave abundant showers, O God; you refreshed your weary inheritance.

Aren’t April showers amazing?  They come in the spring when we’ve planted our seeds and our vegetable and our herbs.  And then we have this amazing produce, beautiful color, and green grass for viewing – miles and miles of it!

We recently went on a day trip and were in awe of the stretches of green grass, where just a few months ago there were brown fields.  We enjoyed the gorgeous full leaves on the trees where back in the winter these same trees were bare.

Feeling a bit weary?  You’ve lost your own leaves?  You’re not producing, growing, or blooming?

Ask him for abundant showers and sit still when they come and soak.  Soak in his presence, let his love drench you and cover you.

Then let Him shine on you and you too, will marvel at the change.  Your strength will be renewed…and the green grass will grow again.

Like Dew

I want to move on to a different topic for a bit now – one of the word “showers.”  April showers bring May flowers…right?  So why not see what the Bible has to say about showers?

Deuteronomy 32:2

Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants.

Isn’t that a beautiful picture?  I’d love to see it painted.

God’s word falling from the sky  - words like love, mercy, justice, holiness, etc – all words of hope and of the character of our Father – falling to the earth…

Like dew

Like showers

Like rain

On us – his tender plants.

And then we perk up, we respond, we lean toward the sun, and we grow, we bloom, and we shine…all bringing glory to Him.

Beauty personified.

I Will

Hebrews 8

This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.

A covenant is a binding promise, and one that God makes he cannot break.  It’s the only kind of promise you’ll ever receive in life that you can count on, bank on, stand on, and see fulfilled – for sure – no chance of disappointment.

Here we read God declaring that his laws will be in the minds and hearts of his people, and they will be His, and He will be theirs.

What more could we, his children, want out of life? 

His word is what sustains us in hard times, loss, incredible persecution, and misunderstandings.  

Knowing we belong to Him keeps us grounded when winds blow, waters flood, and twisters erase.

There will be trouble in the world, we are told that.  But we’re also told to be of good cheer because He overcame this world and death. And there is hope after this life here on earth.

We belong to a faithful God and there is no other one in whom we can place our hope and live…

Rooted

Ephesians 3

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love,  may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

In this passage we totally get a true definition of what it looks like to be established – immovable – unshakeable.

Strengthened in the Spirit

Rooted in love

Power with the Lord’s holy people

Filled with the fullness of God

Wow, it’s important to stay in community with others who love Christ and to constantly stay in the truth of his Word, so that we are strong and full. We might bend with the wind, but we will pop right back up because our roots run deep.

Pretty cool, right?

The Authorities

Romans 13:1

Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.

This verse gives us hope and assurance that HE is in control, not the person in office.  God established authorities – like the sun to rule the day – and the moon to rule the night.  And he knows that we have authorities in our land, like the office of the president, police officers, teachers, etc.  He established leadership positions on the earth to bring order to chaotic people who argue and strive over laws and justice.

However, men/women put particular people in office, and sometimes the choices we make are good ones, and sometimes they are bad.  Just like the choices we make for our own families, our careers, our children – we get them right sometimes and others times we  mess up.

However, God is the final authority and what He says goes.

Don’t like the president?  Pray for him, and let God deal with his actions. You do like the president?  Pray for him and let God deal with his actions.  Prayer and trust in the supreme authority is the key to peace.

We can fret and gripe and cause a ruckus everywhere we go by slandering those in authority, or we can pray and trust and cause an uproar in the heavens that comes down on earth as mercy and grace and provision.

Woe...

Habakkuk 2:12

Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed and establishes a town by injustice!

Wow, what a verse to read during these times, with the current happenings across the globe.  We see cities all over the world where bloodshed through injustice is an everyday occurrence.  And this verse indicates a strong warning against those who try to set up “life” in this manner, by killing off the undesirable.

We may sometimes worry or feel God is not aware or doesn’t care about the injustice around our world. But just the opposite is true.  There are so many verses that remind us that vengeance is his, that he has a place for the orphans and widows, and that he will make all things right.  We have to believe and trust in God to bring justice - and he will.

We are told to pray for those in need, give to them, and love them as we love ourselves.  And then one day all of the needy and destitute will be no more - because all will be made right and restored, forever.    

We cannot imagine what that day will be like, but He has promised.  Thank God that he keeps his promises to those who love him.

And until that day, we can pray for those who shed innocent blood that they too will come to know the love and mercy of our God...who has forgiven us of our own sins...and made things right.