Anyone living in a tropical climate can attest to the rainy seasons. Emotionally, our family has been pretty wet for some time now. Here, rain brings all sorts of creepy crawlies into the house that must be dealt with. There is often flooding and the mosquito population explodes. The normal heat is compounded by the thick, stuffy air and lack of breezes. Umbrellas are pointless (I see people using them more often in the hot season to keep the sun off), and trying to go anywhere with three small children is difficult enough without additional inconveniences. I find my thoughts wistfully drifting toward the next three months, which is the most pleasant and beautiful time of the whole year. In fact, if every day was like those peaceful, comfortable, beautiful, cool days, I’d be all the happier even now.
And yet, both my husband and I are from the Deep South, so the thunderstorms and darkened skies are, in a bizarre sort of way, familiar and soothing. We know that we, and the people we came to serve, need them. The Lord has declared that to everything there is a season. He gently reminds me that the rainy seasons are just that: seasons. They are necessary, for in the rains, the earth finds life. Without them, we would die. This time in our family’s growth has been healthy, though painful as we are being molded by The Potter’s hands. We have felt periods of disappointment, depression, anger, hopelessness and solitude. Yet I know the Lord is whispering our name in the midst of it all.
In C.S. Lewis’s book 3 in the Chronicles of Narnia, the character Eustes is changed into a dragon because of his ugly, selfish dragon thoughts. One night, Aslan himself beckons Eustes to a bathing pool and commands him to shed his skin so that he can bathe. Time after time, Eustes sloughs off the dragon scales with his sharp claws. Finally in despair, he realizes what he has done is useless – he is still a dragon and cannot possibly complete the task on his own. Aslan then tells him, “I must undress you”. With the searing pain that cuts deeper than Eustes thought he could possibly endure, Aslan begins to tear away at the layers of dragon. Only the thought of no longer being so hideous compels him to withstand the pain. Aslan throws him into the pool for the final cleansing and then dresses him in the softest, most beautiful garments. Eustes has been transformed. He is a new creature and is now useable for Aslan’s purposes. In the darkness of death-to-self, he found life.
During this time I have been forced to take a peek inside at my heart and the vileness is staggering. Yet He continues to whisper. Follow Me still higher. I want to use you but together we must throw off all that is entangling you. Run the race. I will see you through. Wait till you see the end result! In the death to self, I am finding life.
He Sees You
In the rain, He sees you.
During the darkest storms, He knows
Where you are.
These are His most glorious moments
Because you grow in Him,
Into Him.
The clouds are thick but always
He will bring a patch of sunlight
Just to reassure you.
Be still! and watch His works.
Be still! and listen to His purpose,
To the BOOM of His GLORY!
Learn from the rain as it falls.
See what beauty it produces
As it clears…
©2001 Thrive
View the original print magazine where this article was first published.
