"Gratitude & Grace"

During an especially difficult moment in my life…barely able to speak between tears of despair. I called a friend…looking for a little comfort…and a little sympathy too, I must admit. Instead of consoling me, she interrupted me and said, “Stop it! Stop your crying right now and say thank you.” I said, “Why would I say thank you for this?” She said, “Say thank you because God has put a rainbow in every cloud. And the rainbow is coming. Say thank you even though you can’t see it cause it’s already there.”

“I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.” Genesis 9:13-16

Indeed, the rainbow is coming, just as God told Noah in the above scripture. The flood ended, God’s yearlong judgment on mankind’s sin and wickedness had finally ended, and Noah and his family survived. Even though they were safe, imagine how frightening and traumatic it must have been to live through the flood and witness its mass destruction. From that day forward, every time it rained, Noah and his family could be fearful of another flood producing the same kind of destruction.

God knew they might be fearful, so in His sweet mercy He made a covenant, a promise, to Noah and all the earth. In this covenant, God promised unconditionally that He would never send another flood to destroy all life on the earth. Three times God reiterated His promise to “never again” destroy the earth by such a flood. After living through such a traumatic experience, it seems God wanted to reassure Noah, so He graciously repeated the promise. Not only did God reassure Noah by repeating His promise, He sealed it with a sign.

That, my friend, was an ultimate moment of gratitude and grace. Even through the darkest of times, the light of your rainbow, your gratitude and grace, can transform any experience for you. And you can transform any experience for someone else. So, prepare yourself so you can be a rainbow in someone else’s cloud. Somebody who may not look like you, may not dance your dances, or speak your language but you can be a blessing to somebody.

Many Blessings!