Thank You God, For The Rain
By Susan Klein
“He loads the clouds with moisture; He scatters His lightning through them. At His discretion they swirl around over the face of the whole earth to do whatever He commands them. He brings the clouds to punish men, or to water His earth and show His love.”
Job 37:11-13
When the sky is abundant with sunshine, I have no trouble expressing my thankfulness to God. When it is blanketed with rain clouds however, I am not so generous with my gratitude. Why is it so hard to give thanks in all things?
You’ve undoubtedly heard the expression, “Into each life, a little rain must fall.” The above passage suggests three reasons why we might experience rain in our lives, each of which fall under God’s discretion. First, we are told that His rain might fall for our punishment, or correction. This could have two possible meanings. One would be a literal rain, such as the flood, which was a form of God’s wrath against the sinfulness of man. Another way in which God might rain on us for our correction is by showering consequences on us for our sinful behavior. These consequences are allowed to restore us to a right relationship with Him, and to hopefully keep us from falling into the same sin again.
Secondly, we see that God brings rain to water His earth. The farmers generally rejoice at this type of rain. It brings life-giving nourishment to our land and thus, to our physical bodies as well. Again, at God’s discretion, He distributes the rain upon the land.
And thirdly, we see that He gives rain to show His love. He could have just filled the earth with water and said, “When you run out, that’s it!” But, He shows us His never-ending love by providing a never-ending supply of water for our benefit. He loves the world enough to promise we will never have too much (as in another worldwide flood - - Genesis 9:15), nor will we ever have to worry about completely running out (Psalm 147:8). In Matthew 5:45, Jesus tells us that God sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. This tells us that He indiscriminately loves all of us enough to draw us to His umbrella-arms by letting a little rain fall into our lives. It may be unpleasant at the time, but has a nourishing purpose.
Next time it’s dark and rainy outside, let’s take a moment to reflect on God’s great love for us and offer up a prayer of thanks.
GOING DEEPER:
1. Are there some intimidating storm clouds on your horizon? Do you trust God enough to thank Him for the rain He is allowing in your life right now?
FURTHER READING:
Acts 14:17; Zechariah 10:1
Susan is our Tuesday Morning Women’s Bible Study Coordinator and one of its teachers. She is also involved in inner city outreach.
