Let it rain

There's something so exhilerating about rain.

Letting it fall down and soak you from head to toe. Without any umbrella for protection. Allowing it to just come down, turn your clothes a darker shade, dampen your socks and ruin your hair.

Sure, its annoying. Frustrating. Interferes with your plans. Makes you late. Screws up any hope of getting anywhere looking presentable.

But I LOVE the rain. I always have.

Not just misty days or slow falling sprinkles. No. I love downpours. All consuming, heavy falling, good luck having any part of you left dry...rain.

Rain like that has a transformative quality to it. Sure, if we let it, it can transform our positive attitudes and ruin our day. But that's not the kind of transformative I'm talking about.

Downpours like that consume you if you let them. They are powerful and heavy. Big and unavoidable. Everywhere around you. Inescapable. And when you're in the middle of one, it's hard not to be overtaken by its majesty.

Yes, I just called rain storms majestic.

They are. For me at least...

They take you to another place. Strip you of all that's unnecessary. Bring you back to an earlier state of purity. Remove unimportant thoughts of worry or stress.

When I'm walking in the rain, I don't want to escape it. Cover myself to stay dry. Avoid getting wet. No...I want to experience it. Feel it. Soak it all up, literally.

As the rain pours down, I feel...
Clean
Natural
Pure
New
Refreshed
Awake
Alive

Rain is invigorating. It wakes you up. Makes you aware. Livens your spirit. Suddenly, you see the world around you. You notice nature, because you can feel it. It becomes a part of you. Because you absorb it.

Rain is also a constant reminder of grace. It's the image we always use when we ask God to pour out His grace and forgiveness on us.

Rain cleanses us. Strips us of our impurities. And makes us new. I always feel like I can start over after a rain storm. Like there's another chance when the sun first peaks through the clouds after the rain finally stops.

 I think there's a very real reason God created rain. Not just for plants and nature. But for us, too. So that we might have a tangible recurring idea of what it means to feel God's presence. To become clean. To be forgiven. To experience God's grace. To discover newness. To come back to life.

These concepts are often so tough to grasp. Rain, though, let's us feel it and know it and live it. So that we can recognize, appreciate, and take full advantage of these blessings when they come.

So, I will continue to love the rain. To venture out in it. Let it pour down on me. Without trying to escape it or protect myself from it. To experience it fully every time it comes. And thank God for sending it with huge purpose in mind.