Chasing Rainbows

"When I send clouds over the earth, the rainbow will appear in the clouds,"

Genesis 9:14 NLT

God delights in putting examples all around us that can speak to us if we're listening.  Last week I drove all over an unfamiliar neighborhood, possibly even breaking a few traffic rules to find a spot where I could capture this breathtaking rainbow!

There is no . . .

height without depth,

dawn without dark,

found without lost,

reunion without parting

victory without defeat,

rainbow without storm.

We would never know how high the mountaintop is unless we had been to the valley.  Our hearts would not thrill to the first rays of sunrise without experiencing the long dark night.  If we had never known the panic of a missing child (even if only for a moment), we would not know the utter euphoric relief of the moment of finding that lost little one.  Without the ominous black-clouded drama of the storm played out in a wild sky, we wouldn't know how much the rainbow's promise means.

When I was growing up, one of my favorite things to do on the weekend was to watch ABC's Wide World of Sports.  I loved the opening words spoken by Jim McKay, "Spanning the globe to bring you the constant variety of sport... the thrill of victory... and the agony of defeat... "  Who could forget the scene of that hapless ski jumper and his terrifying wreck that accompanied the phrase, "the agony of defeat?"  The fact is that in sports, and in life, if there was no "agony of defeat," there would be no "thrill of victory" either.  What you may see as inevitable defeat is only the setup for your comeback story, and everyone knows that great comeback stories finish with equally great victory celebrations!  

Life's most intense joy is most distinctly outlined

against the backdrop of it's deepest struggles.

It is in the contrasted lows and highs,

darkness and light,

defeats and victories

we experience God's greatest beauty.

I don't know who you are or what you might be facing.  I do know that there are people going through storms of many kinds right now--you are not alone!  I just want to encourage you with the thought that in God's forecast for the lives of His children, every storm ends with a rainbow!  I pray that we will learn in the storm to see the black clouds as the perfect backdrop for the blindingly beautiful rainbow that is surely on its way!

Have you chased any rainbows lately?

How have you experienced God in the contrasts of life?

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I'm joining Ann Voskamp in her counting of the multitude of gifts God bestows everyday!
I hope you'll join in if you haven't already!

#131-145

131.  Cooperation132.  Collaboration133.  The 4 of us, TOGETHER over coffee, work, reading, dreaming, just being US134.  The echoes of the first Thanksgiving where one of my ancestors gave thanks135.  Traditions that keep faith and family close136.  Grandma's Brownie Recipe137.  Passing on recipes and how-to's to She-So-Sweet because she asked138.  The smell of Hero Husband's frying turkeys and the taste of the one he smoked139.  The invention of the telephone that lets me talk to Mom & Daddy 1200 miles away140.  My sister-in-law rescuing me from a frustrating conversation 141.  That I didn't have to go anywhere on Black Friday142.  Easy holiday weekend mornings when everyone can sleep in143.  Seeing Drummer Boy thrive and excel in his job144.  A voice on the other end of the phone line who knows what you should do145.  The way he and I came out of the sermon with the same thoughts