Have you ever had a rainy, cloudy day. I don’t mean on the outside, but on the inside. Just a dark day, or days that kind of come out of nowhere in this fallen world of spiritual battle. Maybe the clouds are a result of intense and discouraging, even heartbreaking situations you are in. Deuteronomy 8 says that sometimes God allows His Beloved Ones to to go through the wilderness. His intentions are to humble us (to awaken desperation, and longing in us), and to, through the test, know what is in our hearts.
You see, it is easy to love, worship, and trust Him when we are dwelling in the lush green pastures, but what about the times of unexpected arid conditions. This is where God finds out how far along we are as True Adorers, True Worshippers. Do we love Him and worship Him because of how He makes us feel? Do we obey Him out of true affection, or simply because we feel blessed for all He doe? At the Cross, do we abandon Him or do we, like John, stand with Him because we are compelled by a love that has taken root in us at the deepest level? Are we smitten by His face or are we only faithful when we receive things from His hand?
The great gift that dark days give us is that the beauty of His presence becomes the one stark contrast that you hold on to. He seems in those times, more beautiful than you ever remembered, and His beauty is the hope and promise that keeps you steadied in love during the storm.
In Ezekiel 1, Ezekiel says the very site of Jesus is like a radiant rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day. Rainbows speak of hope and promise, and the color of the rainbow, according to Revelation 4, is emerald, which is the symbol of the realm of steadfast love.
During rainy, cloudy days, set aside the time to behold Him. His beauty, like a radiant emerald rainbow, will keep you in the hope and promise of steadfast love until the clouds pass away. You’ll find that the gift of rainy days cultivated a love stronger than darkness and death itself.