Sunday,
the one day that we intentionally set aside as a day of a rest, a day to
worship Jesus. The sermon this morning was on forgiveness, a message that we
all need to hear, but that’s not what stuck out to me today. No, it was
something that happened earlier in the day. This morning, as youth began to
gather in the youth room for Sunday school, the weather outside began to turn
dark. Right before Sunday school began, it started to pour rain. Although I was
supposed to be roaming around the youth room, greeting folks, I was distracted.
I found myself too often going over to the window to watch it rain, or stepping
outside to watch it rain. When I stepped outside and saw the rain, heard the
rain and smelled the rain, it took me to another place. It reminded me of camp.
It reminded me of those summer days where a mid-afternoon rain shower might
halt our plans or temporarily change them. It reminded me of how mid-afternoon
thunderstorms during rest hour were welcomed because that often meant an
extended rest-hour. It also reminded me of how too often we would take opportunities
of extended rain periods to make our own slip-n- slides around camp. You would
be surprised at how many different ways you can make a slip-n-slide when it’s
wet.
Once I
got past those feelings of nostalgia, I saw the importance of this moment.
While it was a nice reminder of camp, it was an even stronger message. For me
today, it was a reminder to enjoy the world that God has created. Too often we
look at the elements of nature and either sees them as a nuisance or just let
them pass by. We look at unexpected rain showers as a damper on plans. We look
at cold weather or hot weather as a nuisance to our own comfort. When it rains
on a summer’s day do we stop and take a moment to enjoy it, to enjoy what God
has provided? God not only reveals himself through prayer, through scripture,
and through worship, but he reveals himself through a summer’s rain shower,
through a sunset on the beach, through a mountain top overlooking the vastness
of God’s creation. God is here daily, in our lives, ready for us to seek him
and to find him.
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