Lessons from Rainy Days and Psalm 63

January 20, 2018

I went up to the roof again. It had just stopped raining, and I just had the urge to spend a little quiet time in the afternoon with God . . . but a touch nearer to Him this time.

Our conversation started off as usual: me thanking Him for the week thus far and then rambling on about my fears and anxieties. However, somewhere in between pauses and sighs and deep breaths, I thought about the rain.

I used to abhor the rain. It brought me great inconvenience whenever I was out for the day. The cold made me shiver, sometimes a little too much. The overcast skies, I thought, only served the purpose of mockingly inviting my mood to mimic their dreariness. And of course, the getting-damp part—wet enough to suffer through the biting wind and body tremors that made people look at me funny/concerned.

I never realized back then that I was akin to parched land. I was desperately thirsty,  but it was the worst kind of thirst because: a) It couldn't be quenched with anything in this world; b) I had unknowingly been trying to do so with saltwater (aka., grades, friends, guys, etc.); c) I had no idea that I was thirsty/dehydrated to begin with. Like the land during drought, I was still there day in and day out. Existing but barely.

But as God is who He always has been—loving, kind, and patient—He's been taking to lovingly, kindly, and patiently cultivating and restoring the dried-up ground that is my soul. Already, He has removed so much debris and uprooted so many weeds. He has done all that work to make me His fertile soil. For more of His work to grow, bear fruit, and flourish.

And as if that intentional love and care wasn't enough, He has also promised me the following:

1. I will be fully satisfied (v. 5).
2. He will fill me with Himself so much so that I will sing His praises (v. 5, 11).
3. He will uphold me with His right hand (v. 8).
4. Those who may want to harm me will get their due (v. 9).
5. Those who speak untruthful things [about me] will be silenced (v. 11).

Know that those promises above are the same ones He has for you. And they're found in just one chapter in one of the several books of the Bible—God's own love letter to all of us.

If you're not taking it from Psalm 63, then take it from the rain. Like the rain, living water is free. Stop reaching for the briny stuff at the cost of your soul.

Stay golden, hupomeno, and God bless you!