2 Chronicles 7:12-16, Then the LORD appeared to Solomon at night and said to him, “I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice. If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land. Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to the prayer offered in this place. For now I have chosen and consecrated this house that My name may be there forever, and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually.”
It was cold and rainy the day of Bubba’s funeral. His formal name was Sterling Blackwell Braswell, but to me he was always “Bubba.” I’m not sure where that started but it was the name by which I knew him for most of my life. There are many jokes about Bubbas, but while my brother had a sense of humor, he was no joke. The weather was not cooperating, the corona virus restrictions limited the number that could even attend, and the rain just kept coming…
As the family reminisced about my brother’s life, a question was asked about any memorable quotes he may have made. One came to mind immediately for me. He once told me, “Good things happen when it rains!” He listed several events that took place in his life when it was raining. I’m not sure if those were words intended just to help me through a moment, or if that was some long standing historically related weather event. I just remember he told me that, and yet we were standing at his funeral with the prospect of being in the cold rain of that day.
Biblically, rain can come in the form of punishment, (Genesis 7) or blessing. (Leviticus 26) I suppose context is the key to which it might be. But truthfully, the rain of any given moment may not be immediately defined. Its absence can be both blessing and curse as well. So, was Bubba right or wrong?
His point was likely that rain can be many things, not just detrimental. It can even have a positive outcome, even when it appears to be a nuisance, or nemesis. It can grow, not just destroy. Maybe, he was wiser than he knew. I’m sure the comment was off-hand and not really meant to have a deeply profound meaning. But that doesn’t change the fact that what he said had that same depth.
As for me, if Bubba was right, I just wish it would rain. I pray for that rain in the waters of the baptistry which takes away the sins of the world. I pray for the rain that forces us to grow when sunshine and ease are not getting the job done. I pray for the rain that gives focus to otherwise distracted and chaotically driven people. I pray for rain that can cure disease. Most importantly, I pray for a rain to wash away whatever barriers we have built obscuring God. Even more than a healed land, we need God-mended souls.
I pray for you that life is going well. If you need rain, then I pray you are getting exactly what you need. If you need it to dry out for a while, I pray God will shut the heavens so that your life will not be found losing ground to some destructively rising tide.
The greatest news of all is that rain or shine, God is still LORD OF ALL! Godspeed on your journey…