Some answers take time.
And I’m impatient.
Some learning comes from hard times.
And that hurts.
Rainbows come after storms!
Before I continue this post let me preface this by saying I know that hearing good comes from hard is not always reassuring. I know that hearing tragedy can produce blessings is not the pill we want to swallow. I understand that even though we can rejoice in knowing that “we are hard-pressed on every side but not crushed” (2 Cor. 4:8) we would rather be handled with care! So please don’t shut down and move on before hearing me out.
Over the last two weeks I have missed rainbows. Real, outside rainbows…not figuratively speaking. Pictures have been popping up on social media of rainbows that are literally out my back door. But I never saw them! I missed the beauty entirely!
And that has made me wonder.
How many rainbows have I missed? How many of God’s answers to prayer have I overlooked because I’m stuck in my own thoughts; sitting in my own self-pity; or just neglected to see because I’m focused on what I cannot understand?
Don’t miss the rainbows that come after the storms!
The more I live, the more I work in women’s ministries, the more I understand:
- Some things we will not understand.
“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:7
- Some things push us deeper into trusting God and help to strengthen our faith.
“For we live by faith, not by sight.” 2 Corinthians 5:7
- Some things take time to unfold the glory that Christ will reveal.
“Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.” Ecclesiastes 3:11
Even things that hurt.
Joy and pain collided the day that Christ was hung on the cross. Beauty arose. Rejoice, rainbows will come after storms!
Rainbows can come after heartache.
Rainbows will come after tragedy.
Rainbows will come after storms that rock your boat, flood your world, and destroy your land.
Rainbows are revealed when light breaks through the clouds!
“When I send clouds over the earth, the rainbow will appear in the clouds” Genesis 9:14
Today I sit and rejoice that God has answered prayers of over 6 years long! Over 72 months ago I was entrenched in a mending process that was stitching me back together piece by piece and I knew God loved me but I wondered could he ever use such brokenness for His glory.
Everyday I see rainbows.
Your faces.
FF girls near and far!
Mercy and grace prevails!
Rainbows do appear after storms! Don’t miss them!
Jodie
