Have you ever gotten wet!?!? You know there are times that you’ll get wet, one thing about me is that I’ve never like to swim in deep water primarily because I can’t that well LOL!! Yet I’ve always loved to get wet, and I’ve always loved to play in the water… and I love when it rains, I love the smell of rain, and I love the fact that rain can be soothing and comforting. Yet, you and I both know the effects of getting wet, because you can get your clothes wet, your car will get wet, your hair can get wet, your groceries can get wet, your phone can get wet, and anytime you’re in the rain there is that great possibility that you will indeed get wet when it rains.
There was a song we used to sing in elementary school “Rain rain go away, come back another day”. Have you ever sung that song in your life, I’m sure that you have most certainly asked for the rain to go away but it doesn’t! There are times that we want the rain to go away, there are times that we want the rain to stop, and there are times that we won’t to rain to cease but it doesn’t. Life will send us the rain, life will certainly rain on you, and life will most definitely bring things to you that you didn’t expect because in this life you can’t get go through it without getting wet! The rain will certainly come, the rain will certainly flow, and the rain will certainly show up because life is a guarantee of wetness!
You don’t know when the rain will come but it will come, there are times that you will feel the rainstorm of criticism, the rainstorm of mental struggles, the rainstorm of heartbreak, the rainstorm of rejection, the rainstorm of wondering did you make the right choice, the rainstorm of fear, and the rainstorm of worry we all have to deal with a rainstorm. Sometimes it seems like the rain never stops, sometimes it seems like the rain always shows up, and sometimes it seems like the rain is always in the forecast because you and I are not exempt from going through the rain!
No matter how strong you are, no matter how faithful you are, and no matter how much you love the Lord you’ll be dealing with a rainstorm! But see it is the rainstorm you learn how to push through the rain, you learn how to have faith in the rain, you learn how to trust God more in the rain, you learn and see that when I get wet I can’t run away but sometimes I need to get wet in order to really grow! It is amazing how we grow in tight places, it is amazing how we grow in places and spaces we didn’t think, it is amazing how we grow in the times that we have to really be tried, really be tested, and really have to deal with the rain!
You should never fight the rain, but you should always appreciate the rain! That seems like it’s a contradiction doesn’t it…… well I’ve come to this conclusion, the more we grow with God the more things we have to deal with, but good preparation always makes you able to stand and to be able to continue to go forward! When you go forward that’s because the rain didn’t stop you, that’s because the rain didn’t restrict you, that’s because the rain didn’t keep you down, that’s because the rain didn’t make you falter, the rain has come but yet God has been there and because God has and is there it has made you able to survive and keep the faith even with the challenges going on!
Challenges are a required course in the University of life, that’s something that you’ll have to deal with and encounter is challenges! Yet I’ve discovered this about challenges…. “They are what you need”. If you look at a car manufacturer, they didn’t start out successful but it took some challenges in order for them to get to that new place in life and building a successful industry! You look at a grocery store chain, it doesn’t mean they started out that way but there were challenges in order to get them to where they are now. You look at a school that is highly recognized now, but that doesn’t mean it started out that way but over time it became a better school but they had challenges in order for them to grow into a better school, and into a better program!
It reminds me of the Toronto Raptors, they finally won an NBA Championship last year against the Golden State Warriors! Yet, they for a long period of time kept getting to the playoffs, having that number 1 seed but they still kept getting booted out of the playoffs! Finally they were able to stand on top, finally they were able to celebrate, and finally they were able to calm themselves champions even after all that they experienced, after all they dealt with, and after all they lived with they finally became the champions of the NBA! It was the struggle that they had, it was the rain that they had, and it was the challenges that they encountered that made winning that championship even the more meaningful and the more special because they overcame.
That’s the thing even with the rain coming stay with the course, even when the rain comes keep on holding up that umbrella, and even when the rain comes keep on holding on to your faith and what you believe about God! The rain can come, but the goodness of God will always be there for you because the Lord is still in control of the weather! God is still the one that has all power, God is still the one the one that has all control, and God is the one that still has the the final say so! Don’t run away from the storm, but keep on running to God because that’s where the strength comes from, that’s where the hope comes from, and that’s where the belief that it is going to be better and turn around for me comes from!
So the question is… “Do you trust God, and His plan for your life when it rains?” Rain sometimes is part of the plans God has for you, and you have to ask yourself do you still trust God even when the sun isn’t out! You don’t get to have it sunny all the time, it won’t be favorable conditions all the time, it won’t be pleasant conditions all the time, it won’t be lovely conditions all of the time but do you still trust God in all things!?!? We know that God is a good God all of the time, so do you trust Him at all times when you don’t always know what’s going to happen but at least you know whose in control and who can turn things around! You can survive the rain, because you know it won’t be like this always because God will turn things around for your good!
I can remember when I was in middle school, there were times we would play basketball after school and it would be cloudy outside! So we would still play outside, but then I can remember there were those times that it started rain and of course we were playing on an outside court which made it more slippery,band made the ball wet, and of course we were wet! But you know what we kept doing… we kept dribbling, we kept shooting, and we kept on playing because we loved to play the sport and we said that we won’t let some rain stop us from doing what we love to do! That’s all we needed, was that motivation to keep playing and not allowing anything stop us from doing what we wanted to do!
See whatever you love don’t stop doing it just because some rain has shown up! You love to preach, love to teach, love to sing, love to draw, love to read, love to write, and whatever it is you might get some rain but don’t stop doing it because God is going to make sure that you come out on top! That’s why I know that God is in control, that’s why I know when I do it for God that the Lord will always look out for me and will always take care of me! I’ll keep doing what I love to do, because doing it brings me so much joy and satisfaction that the rain won’t stop but the rain doesn’t know how strong and how much backbone I have! Keep doing it, and you’ll have a story to tell later on about how you survived the rain!
Psalm 40:1-4 NASB
[1] I waited patiently for the LORD; And He inclined to me and heard my cry. [2] He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay, And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm. [3] He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God; Many will see and fear And will trust in the LORD. [4] How blessed is the man who has made the LORD his trust, And has not turned to the proud, nor to those who lapse into falsehood.
Words From GCB 