Have you ever noticed the power of rain? At times it comes along unexpectedly and at times you are provided advance warning of its arrival. Rain has the power to cool things down or make the air so thick you cannot breathe. Sometimes it blows sideways with the accompanying wind and other times it falls straight down. The drops of a rain shower can be small and scattered or large and pounding. Large amounts of rain can drive people from their homes and claim lives; the absence of rain can do the same. Above all, I’ve noticed the power that rain has to cleanse. Rain washes away the dirt that builds up on vehicles, sidewalks, houses, and the leaves on a tree. It clears the air and brings with it the smell of renewal – a fresh start. This time in my life feels like the period just after a rain shower. I feel refreshed, renewed, and cleansed. There are many changes taking place. These changes are both professional and personal, emotional and concrete. My outlook is different. The rays of the sun are shining through the clouds and beckoning a new day. This time of renewal leaves exposed the things and people who are most important in my life, the relationships that sustain and heal me. More importantly, the storm that preceded it washed away those relationships which were toxic and detrimental to my well-being. The rain cleared the path a bit in my walk of faith. It showed me in which direction I need to head and which paths are dangerous and self-destructive. Things are not always so clear after a storm. However, the timing of this cleansing could not have been any more fitting in my life.
“One can find so many pains when the rain is falling.” ~John Steinbeck, 1975
