Send Your Rain/Reign

Rain rain go away,

Come again another day.

Little Johnny wants to play;

Rain, rain, go to Spain,

Never show your face again!

This is a popular nursery rhyme. This is the sentiment of many people right now in Northern California, as we have been pummeled by day after day of rain for about a week. It seems we have already forgotten that only a few weeks ago, the government was talking about, and instituting, water rationing because of the lack of rain. We were and still are in a drought. We need the rain.

I think it is no coincidence that we use the homonyms Reign and Rain when we talk about God. There are many songs that speak of God sending his rain as well as his reign. When our lives and souls become dry, we pray for God to shower us with the rain of his love and mercy. We beg for the Waters of Life reign over us.

"O God, you are my God, I seek you,

my soul thirsts for you;

my flesh faints for you,

as in a dry and weary land where there is no water." - Psalm 63:1

God lovingly complies and sends us his grace and blessings. Careful what you wish for, as the old adage goes. Living in the rain/reign of God is not always easy. There is a cost. Letting go of our desert ways and clinging to flow of the waters of our baptism brings challenges of dying to ourself. Sometimes there is a fear of drowning in the flood. Even with the promises of new life, we are afraid to die and rise to that new life.

Reign, Reign come our way

We need your grace this day

We kneel down and pray;

Reign, Reign! In you we trust,

Let your face shine on us!

Nothing New

Now, I know that my last blog entry was not some drastically new idea, but now I know where it was probably planted in me. Check out Philippians 1:21-26

Philippians 1:21-26

For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labour for me; and I do not know which I prefer. I am hard pressed between the two: my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better; but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you. Since I am convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in faith, so that I may share abundantly in your boasting in Christ Jesus when I come to you again.

Time

I recently have had the honor of being introduced to the thoughts of a man with great perspective, Professor Randy Pausch. Prof. Pausch is best known for his Last Lecture, which he gave about achieving childhood dreams. He has even appeared on Oprah where he gave a condensed version of the lecture. So what has this got to do with time? Prof. Pausch has terminal pancreatic cancer and has been told that he will not be alive much longer. This makes his talk on time management all the more gripping.

I do not know Prof. Pausch (although my manager took a class from him), but his words have definitely touched my life. He has made me stop and think about how I spend my time and what is important to me. He has also reminded me that you are never to old to work on achieving your dreams. It is this that has reminded me that you have to make time for the things that are important to you. This blog is an important stepping stone to one of my dreams, so I am going to make time for it.

I have also been thinking about Time and God. During this time of Lent, I have been thinking a little more than usual about the person of Jesus and the time that he spent on earth. God, who is without beginning or end, chose to create time and step into it as a human being. He not only humbled himself in becoming one of us, but he did so at a time when life was really hard. Why choose to be human when there was no indoor plumbing? Why come under the oppression of Rome? Why at a time with no mass media?

I can't say that I can answer these questions, but I believe it probably has to do with faith, hope, and love. Jesus taught us about trust. Jesus taught us about sharing peace and bring healing. Jesus taught us about a personal encounter with our Creator. Our modern technology and conveniences are wonderful, but I think they sometimes get in the way of listen to God.

He also gave us a few good lessons about another aspect of time - patience. If you actually have been checking this blog on a somewhat regular basis. Thank you for your patience. It is very biblical.

This past Sunday we heard the familiar, yet still glorious, story of the raising of Lazarus (John 11:1-45). What a miracle! What a promise! What a gift of hope! Yet my pastor pointed out something I never really pondered before - the waiting. Jesus decided to keep Mary and Martha waiting because he still had work to do and "remained for two days in the place where he was." He knew when the proper time to go to Bethany would be. He knew his priorities and showed that with patience and faith that waiting on God is in our best interest. There is a time for immediate action and there is a time to wait in prayer and let God work his wonders.

So make the most of the time you have with your loved ones, you never know when you will be called home. Why spend your life on anything less than the gifts and desires God instilled in us. It is never too late to dust off those childhood dreams and re-prioritize our lives around what is truly important. Thanks be to God!