Look... It's a Rainbow!
A reading for Thursday, September 15, 2016: Genesis 9:8-17.
My children love to discover a rainbow in the sky. It happens when we are driving or at home busy with some task. Everything is going along just as it always does and suddenly there is a rainbow. "Look..." they shout, "It's a rainbow!" They act as if they have never seen it before. There is excitement in their voice and all at once life is different for a few moments. It's just sunshine reflecting through the water droplets in the sky, the skeptic might argue, but to my children it's like they've just won the lottery.
In the book of Genesis, God makes covenant with Noah to never destroy the earth again with a flood. The covenant is not only with Noah, but with Noah's descendants (which are all the people of the earth) and all the creatures, the birds of the air and the things that crawl on the ground. God places the symbol of God's war against evil and sin in the sky to remind both sides of the agreement. The rain-bow is placed as a visible sign of God's invisible grace. God promised to surround all of creation with his steadfast love and commitment.
Perhaps when we see a rainbow, aware of what it means to God and to us, we too should shout. "Look... a rainbow! God still loves us and has promised to care for us. Even in the midst of our own evil and sin, God will be faithful." We too should have excitement in our voice and recognize how different life has suddenly become even for a few moments. It's just sunshine reflecting through the water droplets in the sky, the skeptic might argue, but to us as God's people it's like we've just won the lottery. Because in the grace and mercy of God, we have!
Thank you God for rainbows and for your love for us.
My children love to discover a rainbow in the sky. It happens when we are driving or at home busy with some task. Everything is going along just as it always does and suddenly there is a rainbow. "Look..." they shout, "It's a rainbow!" They act as if they have never seen it before. There is excitement in their voice and all at once life is different for a few moments. It's just sunshine reflecting through the water droplets in the sky, the skeptic might argue, but to my children it's like they've just won the lottery.
In the book of Genesis, God makes covenant with Noah to never destroy the earth again with a flood. The covenant is not only with Noah, but with Noah's descendants (which are all the people of the earth) and all the creatures, the birds of the air and the things that crawl on the ground. God places the symbol of God's war against evil and sin in the sky to remind both sides of the agreement. The rain-bow is placed as a visible sign of God's invisible grace. God promised to surround all of creation with his steadfast love and commitment.
Perhaps when we see a rainbow, aware of what it means to God and to us, we too should shout. "Look... a rainbow! God still loves us and has promised to care for us. Even in the midst of our own evil and sin, God will be faithful." We too should have excitement in our voice and recognize how different life has suddenly become even for a few moments. It's just sunshine reflecting through the water droplets in the sky, the skeptic might argue, but to us as God's people it's like we've just won the lottery. Because in the grace and mercy of God, we have!
Thank you God for rainbows and for your love for us.
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