Hold On To Hope
“I have set my rainbow in the clouds,
and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. Whenever I
bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember
my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never
again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life.” – Genesis 9:13-15
As I write this, rain is pouring down outside. It rained
much of last week. Predictions are for three very wet days this week. Flash
flood watches and warnings are everywhere. A tornado watch rests over our area.
We are weary and water-logged.
And yet the rain continues to fall.
Do you ever feel like that about your life? Does it
ever seem like you’ve had one set back after another, one illness after
another, one headache, one heartbreak, too many? And you wonder why and how you’ll
ever make it through the valley.
A few years ago I walked with friends who were in such
a valley. A son sick with cancer, a horrible disease that eventually took his
life. A daughter that was in a wreck. A lightening strike on their house that
took out all of their electrical devises. Medical expenses that were without
end. And the fear. The all-consuming fear.
I found myself asking: How much more God? How can they
withstand anymore? And, yet, they did. Faith does that for people. It sinks
deep inside and provides roots that may sway and falter but that hold us up
through the storms.
As the rain pours down, I can’t help but think of
those along the coast and for miles inland. The victims of Hurricane Michael.
Many live in tents now. Others struggle to keep tarps on their roofs and over
holes where windows once were. Mold grows but they are effortless to stop it.
And I think: How much God? Their lives are shattered.
Every thing around them is hard. It will be months before even basic services
are available. Think in terms of water, sewage, electricity. Baths are a
luxury. Food is basic and, usually, cold. These are people like you and I. They
once sat in their cozy homes, relaxing in a recliner and watching television.
Or look at the news reports of the wildfires raging in
California. Towns destroyed. People fleeing with nothing but their lives. And,
sometimes, people losing their lives as their vehicles and homes are consumed
with raging fires. How much God? People are hurting. How much can they stand?
And, yet, I am reminded that our safety and security
doesn’t come from things which are so easily destroyed. Our security comes from
God. Our safety rests in belonging to Him. Our rock, our shelter, in the storms
that rage against us.
God sent a flood that destroyed every living thing on
the earth except for those people and animals who were on the ark with Noah.
Afterwards, God made a promise. The rainbow is a reminder of that promise.
No matter how much rain falls, the sun will shine on
our land again. Towns will be rebuilt. Families will be restored to their
homes. Hope comes in the form of a promise. It came to earth as a baby and died
on a cross, only to rise again and live forever more.
I don’t know your struggle this day but I do know
this: God holds you close in the storm. Hope reminds us that there are better
days ahead. Look at the rainbow and remember. God is faithful. You really will
be okay.
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