Friday Devotion - April 4

Today's offering is from Allen Solomons:

“Come and watch the rain”

 

These are the words that my grandmother spoke to me many times while my family and I were down in Allendale, SC visiting. It was such an inviting phrase from a special person. There was only one problem: My eight, nine and ten year old mind didn’t understand.

 

“Why would you want to watch the rain? That’s really boring,” I often wondered. But now I realize how much I didn’t understand that my grandmother did. It’s an understanding that grows with time that I still don’t understand and don’t think I ever fully will.

 

My grandparents lived on a farm before they died. You can look out the large back porch and see where cotton or soybean fields once where. You can see where pine trees now take much of that space. Things you won’t find are noisy traffic or loud neighbors, or the daily bustle of city life. One thing you will find, however, is peace.

 

I was there just a week ago, and thankfully, it was raining. I stepped on the porch and a massive sense of peace enveloped me. It was almost overwhelming, like you’ve been in a noisy place and you’ve quickly gone to total quiet. I felt that calling to simply “watch the rain.” I sat there for nearly an hour and was never bored. I felt the “ר֫וּחַ”, (English translation, “rauch;” which means breath, spirit, or wind in Hebrew). I felt the “ר֫וּחַ” of placidness and calm.

 

Jesus calls us in the same way: he calls us to peace. Second Thessalonians says,

“May the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in all ways. May the Lord be with you all.” 

 

It’s these words that transcend any human understanding. When we share the peace each Sunday, we share the peace that Christ teaches to us share. It doesn’t matter that you may have “trespassed” against someone, you can share the peace with them just as you would a close friend, for we are all equal at the God’s table and in his house.  

 

Just as I can find a place where it peaceful, so can you. It’s a place where you feel relaxed and open. It’s a place where you can feel a deep understanding of the world around. So this week, I challenge you to find that place where you find peace. Feel God’s ר֫וּחַ. Invite someone to “come and watch the rain.”

 

Allen Solomons