Not just the sprinkle-your-head-barely-know-it's-there type, but the good old soak-you-to-the-bone stuff. When I was little I hated rain. It meant we couldn't go outside and play, it made everything wet and muddy, and it was more of a necessary evil than anything else. Something I had to endure more than enjoy. As I got older it made driving dangerous, it splashed on my clothes, and caused more trouble than good.
But then things changed.
I married a man with a totally different perspective on life. When our children were young, rather than keeping them inside during rainstorms, he would have them put on their swimming suits and we'd all go outside to play. Of course, the neighbors looked at us as if we'd lost our minds. But somehow I think the little child inside them wanted to be outside with us, playing in the giant sprinkler God provided just for us.
It's funny how the way you see things can change.
I used to see God as
SOMEONE WHO CONDEMNS PEOPLE WHO DON'T DO EXACTLY AS THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO DO AT ALL TIMES.
Now, after learning more about Him, I see Him as a loving, caring Father who wants the best for me. He's not standing over me, waiting for me to fail. He wants nothing more than for me to succeed!
I used to believe
ALL PEOPLE WHO DON'T ATTEND A CERTAIN CHURCH AND WEAR CERTAIN CLOTHES AND SPEAK A CERTAIN WAY AND PRAY A CERTAIN WAY AND BELIEVE JUST EXACTLY THE SAME TO THE SMALLEST DEGREE WILL GO DIRECTLY TO HELL.
I know better now. I know that God can take a Methodist, a Baptist, a Presbyterian, a Catholic... the list goes on ... and bring them all together through one common element; Jesus Christ. That's all that matters in the end. And we all have to depend on the grace of God to fill in the blanks for what we have misinterpreted or just plain don't understand when all is said and done.
Grace. Thank you for showing it to us, God. Soak us with it. Rain it down.
Psalm 72:6
May the king's rule be refreshing like spring rain on freshly cut grass, like the showers that water the earth. (NLT)
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