Refreshment
By
Peggy Kleckner
“See
I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?”
Isaiah
43:19 (NIV)
Autumn can bring rainy,
dark days. Typically, these are not my favorite. They seem cloaked in gloom and
somewhat tighter-fitting or confining. They remind me that winter is closer,
the days are shortening and the temperature will be dropping. I prefer the
sunshine days of autumn, where God displays His glory in bold colors and the
sky seems broad and roomy.
However, once in the
midst of a dark and gloomy, rainy day, my heart spoke whispers of new growth. I
thought of all of the roots of the trees and plants rejoicing in praise as they
were drinking in the rain. Perhaps they danced in celebration!
A couple years ago, it
had been a year of drought. We knew our ground needed the life-sustaining and
refreshing rain. We could more easily see and accept His gift of showers,
because we had experienced the need. We had seen the effect of the lack. When
the showers came, it brought us visions of new growth for next spring and we
could look ahead with fresh hope.
That drought two years
ago was a great reminder to me. I had been in some dark and gloomy spiritual
days. I felt as if I was confined, hemmed in. Some days it felt complete with
thunder and lightening. But other days, He reminded me that He is up to
something good. He spoke to me and says, “Do you not perceive it?...Don’t you
know me by now?”
These days are not to
frighten me. They are for my refreshment. They have been given as a gift from
my Father’s heart. He is watering His seed in me, looking forward to fresh
blooms and good fruit.
All of the seasons are
necessary, and are set in order by our sovereign God. He calls out the seasons
of our life, both the darkness and the light.
So, I will rejoice in
my dark days and dance in my gloom, for God is springing up good things in me!
GOING DEEPER:
1. What darkness
is trying to hold your attention captive?
2. Are you
willing to ask God to help you look past this season to see the vision of new
growth He has planned?
FURTHER READING:
Peggy
is a wife and mother of four adult children - - two sons and two stepsons, and
is an active encourager at Oakwood Church in Delafield.
