Love Rains Down

Rain is an amazing miracle. Think about it: millions and bazillions of tiny water droplets fall from clouds saturated with moisture way up in the sky. How each little raindrop forms way up there in the sky, I can't figure out. How far they journey before they hit the ground, I just don't know. But sometimes I just look up into that gray sky as the raindrops fall, and I am amazed that water comes from the sky in such perfect little round drops.

Then each one of those drops collects into puddles to create a generous drink for the ground, like a glass of iced water for the thirsty soil on a dry day. The earth soaks it up, and it is nourished to produce spring grass and buds and flowers. The rain cools and humidifies the air, making it rich to breathe in and out. Rain cleanses the very air we breathe, making the world appear cleaner and clearer, like looking through a spotless lens. You didn't know the film was there until it was wiped away by the rain.

I love rainy days.

I would like to meet the person that made the executive decision that all rainy days are automatically bad days. Somewhere along the path of history, someone started getting grumpy on rainy days, and then they spread that negative attitude. They started referring to rainy days as "down days", "dreary days", and "bad-hair days." I want to meet this person because I want to tell them what rain means to me.

Rain means that God provides nourishment so that new life can grow. He provides refreshment in the dry places. Rain means that His love pours down abundantly on the whole Earth. It washes us clean and makes us whole. Rain cleanses the film from my lens so that I can see myself, the world, and the Lord clearly again. Rain means a miracle, an everyday kind of miracle that we tend to overlook - the miracle of His cleansing, His refinement, His provision, His love.

Rain means puddles to splash in. It means colorful rain boots and patterned umbrellas. It means a little extra color and a little extra fun. As I walk to class, breathing deep the moist air, I sing to myself, "Love rains down...love rains down..." and I think about how each raindrop could be a drop of God's love for the people of the world, including me. It could rain forty days and forty nights, and God's love would still not run dry. Let it rain.

So somewhere along the line, someone decided that rainy days are bad days, but they were wrong. In fact, every day I wake up and see the rain outside, I know that God loves the world. Sometimes I even think that He was thinking of me because He knows how much I love His rain. Just yesterday I had a pretty hard day, and when I woke up this morning and saw the rain outside, my heart burst will thankfulness. Jesus knew I needed a beautiful rainy day today to remind of His love that washes over the whole world like a spring shower.

When it rains, I can't stop thinking and singing about His love. Rain is not the world crying, it is the world rejoicing, drinking, soaking up God's abundant grace and love.

It is funny that we often compare our troubles to "storms" of life. What if we began to also see those kinds of storms as beautiful outpourings of God's generous love and grace? Lift your eyes to the gray sky and see each rain drop as a tiny miracle, falling from heaven to give life. See something more. Put on your favorite rain boots and splash in the puddles of God's grace. Love rains down.