This was in the late afternoon, on election day- Tuesday, November 4th, 2014.
I was working on cleaning up my flower bed and getting my plants ready for their winter nap, and my son was jumping on our trampoline when suddenly he yelled, "MAMA, LOOK!" and pointed at this rainbow that was WAY above us in the sky. (He later said it looked like a big smile, and I think that's exactly what it was.) After a moment of prayerful contemplation, I realized something; if he hadn't fallen flat on his back and into a position that forced him to look up, he would've missed it. That makes me wonder how many rainbows (promises of hope) I miss because Im too busy focusing/working on things in this world, instead of being still for a moment and looking up (to God, in prayer).
And Ive wondered why life knocks me down sometimes!
That's not all I gleaned from this unexpected moment; I was also made aware that I might've missed the rainbow, if my son hadn't been so genuinely excited about. If, instead, he'd calmly said, "Hey mom, there's a rainbow, you should see it." there's a good possibility that I may not have even taken the time to look up from the mountain of work that lay before me. I am 39 after all. Ive seen LOTS of rainbows. Thankfully though, he was so joyful and excited about it, that he made me want to look too.
It only took a quick glance to see it, but first, someone had to be looking. Then, in order to get MORE people to see it, that someone had to be excited enough about it to get their attention and show them where to look, too.
Sadly, I dont share my faith that way.
Even though Im very plain spoken about just about everything else, when it comes to sharing my faith Im guilty of being one of those passive Christians who prefers not to rock the boat. Its not hard at all to be that type of Christian. But its not really doing what Im supposed to be doing as a Christian either. Mark 16:15 says: “And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.'” So how have I excused my negligent behavior? By 'reasoning' to myself; I know that IM ok, so why risk upsetting anyone else? They've already heard anyway, right? Isnt that their decision to make? Isnt that between them and God? So, either I just dont say anything at all about my faith, or, on the rare occasion that the opportunity is laid bare before me, and I cant not speak up- I speak carefully, delicately testing the water with the teeeniest tip of my toe, and pulling back quickly if it even seems (like it might become, at some point, possibly) a bit too chilly. So Im pretty sure my witness probably sounds about as enthusiastic as saying: "There's this rainbow Ive seen, and you could look at it too, if you're not too busy... but if you dont want to, thats ok too." and you know what? Im sorry for that, really, really and truly sorry. Because JESUS IS INCREDIBLE! And you WILL be amazed by Him, if you'll just look- REALLY LOOK! QUICKLY!
Jeremiah 29:11-14 11For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 1I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.”
