Weeping skies

Acknowledge and take to heart this day that the Lord is God in heaven above and on earth below. There is no other. (Deuteronomy 4:39)

Is it just me, or do the skies seem to weep on the days when we are most sad? 

Here in Savannah, it’s been an inordinately dry autumn. Until this past week, we’d not experienced much rain. 

That all ended on Tuesday, as Tropical Storm Nestor moved into our area. Ironically, Tuesday was the same day that my workplace diminished by hundreds in a massive corporate layoff. 

I couldn’t help but be struck by the fact that the skies turned dark and the rain started to fall, just as many of my coworkers were learning the news that they would no longer be employed. It was as if the heavens, themselves, were crying with the rest of us. 

Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever attended a dry funeral and some of my worst days happened when it was raining. The rain, in these cases, always served as a reminder to me that God is with me during my times of sorrow. 

As inevitably as the rain falls, however, the sun always returns, thereafter – oftentimes, appearing to be more brilliant and beautiful than it was before the storms. I wonder, would we appreciate sunny skies if we never saw the clouds? I don’t think so. 

While we’re quick to blame God for not protecting us from our trials, only He knows the lessons He is teaching us as we walk in the rain. Even if our difficulties only serve to remind us of our frailty and need for a sovereign God, our heartaches have a purpose. 

The next time it rains on your parade, or you step in a mud puddle after hearing bad news, don’t let it add to your sorrow. See it as a reminder that God is with you, walking you through the storm. 

Never forget that He will bring the sun back tomorrow.