WOW!!! Was that a gully washer or what??!! You can use whatever term or phrase you are familiar with, but yesterday’s rainstorm was definitely one for the books…and it was certainly more than just a sprinkle that settles the dust, so to speak. As many of you know Nancy and I have been gone for about a week. We got home yesterday mid afternoon and drove in rain pretty much the entire way home from the Badlands. There was already 2.8 inches of rain in our rain gauge yesterday afternoon. (Yep, I have one of those fancy KELO-Land rain gauges.) Then, this morning there was another 5.3 inches in the gauge. So, that totals up to just over 8 inches of rain. We had street flooding in front of our house and had standing water about 2/3 of the way up our driveway. However, I am fortunate in that we only have a couple spots in our basement where the carpet got a little wet. I’m glad we got home when we did.
But thinking about all this rain has me thinking about a passage in the Bible that speaks of another type of rain that our world needs…the rain of righteousness. Isaiah 45:8 speaks of the heavens raining down righteousness. Righteousness is about being holy or living according to the values of God’s Presence and Kingdom. Certainly, that is something our world desperately needs, for more people…in fact, for all of creation to be living according to God’s Kingdom Values.
Isaiah 45 is written by the prophet Isaiah. He is giving hope to Jerusalem and the people of Israel who are living in exile. God is communicating with the people saying that even though times are difficult, God is still God. God is still in control and good days are coming.
In fact, Isaiah 45 tells of how God is going to use King Cyrus, a gentile king, to do God’s work. So, it isn’t just people of faith that God can work through. God is able to use whoever and whatever God wants to to accomplish God’s work. Part of what God see’s happening through King Cyrus’ rule in the region is that it will have a direct impact on God’s presence in the land. That is what will cause the presence of God to rain down on the land once again, and because of that, God’s Kingdom values, or righteousness, will water or nourish the earth…and therefore the desire is that God’s righteousness will spring up and grow because of God’s influence raining down on the people.
Today, as we deal with the rain that has come…and prepare for more rain in our forecast, may we find ways to allow God’s rain (physical) and God’s reign (spiritual and eternal), to become more and more of a reality in our lives and in our world.
Pastor Keith