Reflections in the Rain

I have a feeling this is going to be a different sort of 4th of July.  It's a Sunday and it's incredibly rainy here in Omaha.  Those two factors alone will change things up a bit.  The normal action-packed, outdoor-events sort of holiday will not be the story today.  Yet, being able to sit and read and reflect before church is much-needed for me at this moment, so I am by no means complaining. 

Over the past week, I've had so many blog ideas filter through my mind.  I've sat down to write them out a few different times, but I just haven't had the vision to finish them.  Stories from nannying are plentiful as are topic ideas from my observations about life here in Nebraska versus life in Colorado.  There is so much about which a person could write. 

Yet, this morning as I wake up to the day, all I can do is stare at the rain pattering on the porch outside the sliding glass doors.  As I've gazed at the hundreds of rippling circles created by each drop of rain on the wooden slats, I have realized that I can see the porch railing reflected on the porch floor.  This is not necessarily a novel discovery, but the sudden, conscious recognition of the mirror effect gives me pause. 

On a sunny day, such a reflection isn't possible.  The bright rays of the sun wipe away the reflection and the swirling grains of wood are all that the eye can see.  No rain means no mirror.  How then, would the porch railing ever get to see itself if not for the rain?

Rain is often used as a metaphor for hard times in life.  I sometimes question that analogy since rain can be seen as a blessing in the Bible and is a refreshing occurrence for many humans.  Even so, I understand the comparison, and it just so happens that this comparison deepens my rumination today. 

If it never rained in my life, would I ever be able to see a true reflection of myself?  If trouble and sorrow and pain never gripped my heart, would I ever pause to deeply evaluate my standing with the Lord?  Would I ever stop to gaze into a mirror of my soul and see what lies in the recesses?  I'm not sure.

I don't envision myself as a heartless fool when times are good.  At the same time, I know for a fact that I am not as completely contemplative or intensely introspective when life is smooth.  Throughout Scripture, we are taught that trials are what develop character.  Though we know it, we seldom joyfully embrace the troubles that give us pain. 

To be honest, I have experienced a lot of rain in my life recently.  At times it's been a drizzle.  At times it's been a driving downpour.  The sky has been cloudy and the stormy winds chilly.  Yet, I am learning to take joy in the chance I have to look into the reflection that the rain is providing.  The storm has driven me closer to Christ.  The tempest has given me pause.  I've had no choice but to stop and wait for the storm to lift in order to see what direction the Lord has for me.  Within the waiting, my own reflection has been peering at me through the rain with piercing force.

The reflection I see in the watery mirror is not so attractive.  I have caught a glimpse of areas within myself that are faulty, unbecoming, or just plain ugly.  It's been hard to face the realities that continually rise to the surface.  Yet, I think I would have proceeded to trudge along bearing burdensome dross if the rain had not rolled in and bid me stop.  The cry of my heart is that Christ will do surgery and remove all that is sinful and unlovely about me.  What a painful process that is and will contine to be!  Yet, I know it is needed.  It will be needed throughout my life.

So, thanks be to God!  Thanks be to Him for trials and sorrows that needle my heart and refine my soul!  May the Lord keep me in the path of pain if it will make me more like Christ.  May I never cease to see how reflection is often clearest in the rain.