The Rain of Heaven

Day one hundred fifty-one

Yesterday I mentioned to my family that I had reached 150 blog posts, I am almost half way to reaching my goal!  My son asked what I was going to do after the year is over, "Are you going to move on to vloging?"  I replied, "I don't think so."  My husband commented, "Can you imagine you trying to vlog about the scriptures?  You get so excited about it!"  It is true, any one of my students would tell you that. 

Why am I sharing this with you?  Because I love the fact that my family recognizes my enthusiasm for the scriptures and even though they may roll their eyes at me sometimes when I try to share my 'findings' with them, they love this part of me.  My enthusiasm rubs off on them and they in turn enjoy the scriptures more.  Each of us has something  that gets us excited and we feel that we want to share with others.  Take a moment today and think about your passions and how they have not only brought you joy, but those around you.  Then let the Lord know how much you appreciate Him putting these passions in your life and for giving you the opportunity to share them.  In my prayer this morning I thanked God for my passions, for His nurturing, and for the times I have to share.  And I asked that He would continue to guide me in my discovery of the scriptures and continue to give me the opportunity to share what I learn.

Deuteronomy 11:11-17

Yesterday I talked about the mountains and the valleys in the Promised Land.  Today I would like to focus on the rain from Heaven. 

The land of Egypt was a land that required irrigation to make it fertile.  Those who lived and farmed there had to work very hard to bring water from the Nile River to the places where they grew their crops.  They depended on the yearly flooding of the Nile to fertilize the land.  This flooding process was as necessary as it was destructive.  Egypt was a land of many unknowns and of hard and difficult labor for the people who lived there.

Moses wants the Israelites to know that the Promised Land will be different.  In Egypt they worked for their water.  In this land, God Himself would see to sending the water they needed.  They would not have to dig canals and build complicated irrigation systems to make the land fertile.  They would simply have to depend on the Lord to take care of them.  He would let the rain of Heaven fall upon them.  It would run off the hills and water the valleys and their land would flourish as a result.  God’s promise to them is that if they would walk in obedience to Him, He would see that their need for rain would be met (Deut. 11:13-17).

There is a lesson in this for us. The world (Egypt) all around us struggles from day to day to provide the things they think they need.  They work and they labor to try and take care of themselves.  Sometimes it works and at other times it does not!  However, those who choose to follow the Lord do not have to struggle as others.  Now I am not saying that there won't be any struggles, because there will be, but as we pass through the days of our lives, and follow God, He has promised to take care of His children (Phil. 4:19; Matt. 6:25-33).  He will see to it that the rain falls as it is needed and that each day will be a time when we will see the needs of our lives and our hearts met.

The key is for us to remember that when we are on the mountains of life and the rain of Heaven is falling upon us that that rain will also run down into the valley we will soon enter.  The rain from one hilltop is sufficient to water a hundred valleys!  There it will cause even the valleys of life to become fertile ground for us.  When we pass through the valley, we will encounter the blessings of God and we will find the rain of the hilltop experience sufficient to sustain us through the valleys we are destined to pass through (Psalm 84:5-7).

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow once said: "Into each life some rain must fall".  So true, but whether we enjoy it or not all depends on the perspective we take.  As a child I remember dancing in the rain and jumping in the puddles, the rain didn't seem so bad.  As an adult I think I get caught up in the limitations of the rain, the difficulties it brings.  From a spiritual view point, the rain from heaven should be welcomed and embraced!  When it rains in my life I know that it is just God taking good care of me. After studying these verses in Deuteronomy I have a new appreciation for the rain in my life, and I am grateful for its ability to sustain me through the valleys.   Who would ever think that someone from the Northwest could ever be so grateful for the rain?!