It is necessary now to complete the circle. We’ve looked at the romance of rain and the responsibility of rain; now it’s time to consider the destructive power of rain.
Last night it rained the hardest I’ve ever known it to rain for the longest period of time. It must have dropped 2 or 3 inches in an hour. It was too much for the little town of Laguna Beach.
Laguna sits right at the mouth where a canyon meets the sea. It’s not a good place to build a city. It seems like about every 5-7 years we have a rain significant enough to send a wall of water and mud down the main street of town and into the ocean, taking much of the boardwalk with it.
My poor neighbor across the street lives in a new house that was built on a low spot. He was up all night pumping water out from his garage and under his house. His beautiful hardwood floors are all buckling.
And Chandler and Anne, coming back from snowboarding in Big Bear yesterday took six and a half hours to drive what normally would have taken under two. Three different attempts were thwarted by landslides across the road.
These are just a few instances I know about where the destruction touched me in some small way. Hundreds – probably thousands – have been similarly affected by this particular storm, many in ways much more devastating than these. There’s no way I could have known three days ago, when the gentle steady rain was talking to me so sweetly, that it would turn into so much devastation for so many people.
The hard rain it falls the same on us all,
And how you do depends on your point of view.
One man will curse, while another says, “It could be worse,”
‘Cause he lifts his cup, whether full or empty, to You.
– from “Circle of Blessing” by John Fischer
Here’s the hard part: It all comes from God – the rain that blesses and the rain that curses – and part of living is learning how to receive both. Who can know it? Who can figure it out? Probably no one. But all can learn how to receive it. That’s the challenge.
It’s now 3 o’clock in the morning. Some of you will be reading this minutes after I write it. And after a day of no rain, guess what’s happening right now? It’s raining.
John Fischer The Catch 
Along with your meditation about the difficulty of ‘taking’ the hard stuff in life, I received a forward email about a Dutchman, from Schagen, Holland who built a replica of Noah’s Ark. Will forward the email to you.
The flood in the time of Noah was world destroying. Noah and his family were obedient. After the devastation the Rainbow was put in the sky. In Revelation 4 we find that same Rainbow in the throne room of God. The sign that God’s promises are true are in heaven as well as on earth. This is not just a sign that we will never have another flood of that magnitude, but also a confirmation of the eternal covenant (Genesis 9: 16, 17).
About 6 years ago at age 60, I took the Beth Moore course ‘Believing God’. It made me sit down everyday and get into God’s Word via the daily assignments one is required to do. After the course was over I felt lonely for God. So I began a daily early morning time with God, in prayer, in His Word, and talking to Him, sadly I had never done that before. The first time I read the first 5 books of the Bible made me blurt this question out to God…..What do you want me to get out of these writings? Immediately it was as if God was standing in front of me, His hands on my desk, looking me straight in the eye and screaming at the top of His lungs……Obey Me, Obey Me, Obey Me, Obey Me, Obey Me, Obey Me…… This went on for some time.
As you can understand I am now paranoid about being disobedient.
Reading the emotional experiences you are having with the rain, it seems prudent to recall God’s covenant promises the greatest of which is the savior of the world, Jesus Christ. I know John that you are a man of deep faith and wisdom but your email indicated to me that there is some obvious concern about the rain. Just remember Noah and his family, they were saved and so are you and your family! I know you didn’t forget that but I just want you to be encouraged by the, “I am the Lord, the God of all the peoples of the world, is anything to hard for Me!” Jeremiah 32:7.
Thank God we are safely in the ‘ark’ of His Promises!
The ark Noah built was according to God’s instructions. The size of the ship was such that it rode the waves very smoothly to give maximum comfort to the passengers. I saw this fact on a ‘film strip’ made, in the 60’s, showcasing a small to scale replica of the ark, and the possible replica waves that it might encounter. God thought of everything! When we encounter hardship we are often hard pressed to remember that.
John . . . having watched the news and seeing the mud flowing . . .we were and are concerned about you and yours. How quickly that delightful sound can trickle into a nightmare that changes lives. I so appreciate your analogies . . . and your call to discipline and servanthood. Those of us who were part of that cultural revolution 40 years ago can tend to sit on our laurels and say “I’ve done my bit, I’m tired now – my kids are (thank the Lord) carrying it on”. But though the seasons of life have brought huge changes, even to the point of flood or drought . . . I need that challenge, and the promise the In God is the power to obtain that discipline to go on and fulfill BY His hand – His plan. I’m talking in circles. . .hope you get where I’m going.
Praying that you’re all safe, that your neighbor’s damage doesn’t get worse (we’ve had rain swollen floors before) and that you can return to the full heart and joy of celebrating Christmas.