Beginning of the Rainbow

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, my grandson Callan whispered quietly as he played with his toys. All the king’s horses and all the king’s men, couldn’t put Humpty together again.

We live in a time when families, institutions, nations even, have fallen off the wall. For all the claims of some leaders to have the answer for the future, it is easier to believe that nobody can fix what is going on now.

Peter declared to a discontented mob that the man they nailed to a cross was the Son of God. You don’t get any worse mistake than that. One would think that nobody could fix such a blunder.

Then he claimed that the one they had killed had been brought to life again. We are witnesses to this fact, he said. Peter didn’t risk simply being un-PC. He didn’t risk simply offending a few folk, or even offending the mob. He risked his life.

Peter and the friends of Jesus were witnesses to the fact that Jesus had risen from the dead. I am a witness to the fact that Jesus has risen from the dead. When I was at my lowest, Jesus came to me and breathed his Holy Spirit into my deepest being.

I was that Humpty Dumpty. The king’s horses and the king’s men were useless, but the King could restore, could refresh, could renew life in me.

He did it in me. He does it in everyone who comes to him. Our world is broken, but it is not beyond repair. I pray that today I might share this Great News. Jesus is alive and lives to bring life and light to the world he died for.

I don’t need to figure out how he’s going to work this miracle. I just need to trust that he will.

I looked out my prayer window. Barely discernible, especially in my photo, but there nevertheless: the start of a wonderful rainbow. My thoughts were sealed by that rainbow – the sign of the promise of God. He will never leave nor forsake any of us. He is faithful.

Over the Rainbow

Although the sky was fifty shades of grey, there must have been enough of a hole in the clouds to allow a shaft of sunlight in: we walked towards a weak, but visible, rainbow.

Life can be five hundred shades of grey sometimes, but through it all there will be a rip in the clouds, a shaft of light, and a rainbow. In every teardrop, a rainbow.

I’m thinking about friends and family struggling in tough times right now, but underscoring these thoughts is the low bass drone of a world in turmoil through man-made violence and through natural disasters. Myanmar and Yemen, Bangladesh and Houston, the Caribbean islands and Mexico, Syria and North Korea. And more. 

In all that, it’s hard to see a rainbow. I have to keep focused on the Light of the world. In him is the rainbow, and the promised land.

The God of hope

Soggy summer day again, with the rain falling in waves from the sky and bowing down the heads of the saturated roses. No cold beer today, just hot coffee.

No sitting in the garden either. But I continue to draw encouragement from Jesus, knowing that he knows. He has walked this path before, though his was considerably steeper and more rugged. And I am thinking of another favourite verse, from Romans 15: ‘May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.’

Hope is one of the distinguishing marks of a Christian life. It takes us through the crises and the traumas and the tough decisions, as we look through the heavy rain and see the rainbow, even if it is still in our imagination. It is coming. Breakthrough is on the way.

As I wrote a few weeks ago, in every teardrop through which  we walk in life, there lies a rainbow. Jesus is our bright hope, the hope of glory (his glory) shining through the lives of those who love him. His light shining on our rain creates that spectrum of colour arching through the skies.

So when I feel at my weakest, his strength is visible. When I am at my wits’ end, his wisdom guides me. That is what my faith is all about, and I know it to be true because I have relied on God during many challenging times in my life, and he has never failed me. 

Sometimes I have had to walk that way of the cross, like I feel I am walking now with my dear old mom, but I know that Jesus walked this way before me, and he walks with me, and in the end he will be glorified.

In that hope and in that trust lies that peace which passes all understanding.

Half a Rainbow

Awoke to a sunny but blustery day, a hint of the summer which is fast fading mixed with the unmistakable announcement that autumn is round the corner.

Down the bottom of the field outside of the living room window, half a rainbow sprouted from the ground. I love rainbows. One of the best things about Scottish weather is the frequency of rainbows.

Inevitably the song is in my head. Somewhere over the Rainbow. The words betray such a poignant longing for a better place, beyond reach, out of sight, hoped for desperately.

I thought of my wee anxieties and they pale into insignificance next to the terrifying situations in much of the Middle East right now. How the displaced, bereaved, wounded and frightened people there must long for ‘somewhere over the rainbow’ as they run for safety and often find nothing but barrenness and emptiness, no shelter, no food, no water. 

Jesus told his friends, that in this world there would be trouble, but not to lose heart because he has overcome the world. Encouraging words to hold on to in times of trouble, but I’m thinking that people in these Middle Eastern catastrophes may well be unable to hold on to any words, even if they do know them. What they really need is the Word to hold on to them. 

When we have times of illness or loss, there can be a numbness that prevents us from remaining faithful even to daily reading and prayer habits. In those times, it is the church gathering round whose prayers uphold the sufferer. 

May we, the church universal, be gathered round those suffering appalling pain and loss and do the praying for them. There is a place, over the rainbow so to speak, and Jesus has gone there before us to prepare it. May the people in dire need today have their hearts comforted by the peace which passes all understanding, so that they may rest and be cared for by the God of the poor.

Give them a full rainbow today, Lord, to remind them of your faithfulness.

Soaring

I'm thinking a lot about eagles today. I don't think I've ever seen one of these majestic birds, except perhaps at a wild animal park somewhere.

I've been thinking about how they soar above the storm clouds to avoid being pummelled by the rain. Soar. I love that word. It conveys power, height, and a certain effortlessness. Riding the thermals. Rising on the waves of air. It communicates a certain exuberance, a joy in rising above the storms and  maybe even basking in the sunlight which shines beyond the clouds. An affinity with being somewhere over the rainbow.

Eagles have several traits which lend themselves as metaphors for a healthy relationship with God. But today, this is my focus. I am still set aside, hunkered down by a roaring fire and sneezing and coughing and sniffing. It's amazing that it has taken over two weeks of ill health for me to finally give in, to finally stop trying to get on with my to do list. Why? What is wrong with me?

Today I read in the book of Isaiah, chapter 40, those famous words...those who wait on, who trust in, The Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not faint.

I may look like I am slumped by a roaring fire. But in fact, I am soaring on wings like eagles, as I wait on The Lord.

Neon Rainbow

It was one of those blustery, showery days. Brilliant blue sky one minute; lowering black clouds the next. Walking back from watering my neighbour’s greenhouse plants while she is on holiday, I saw the foundational arc of a rainbow planting itself in one of the golden, harvested fields near our home.

As I watched in amazement, the rainbow completed the arc and then grew in intensity until the colours were truly neon. And above it stretched a second rainbow, paler and less vibrant, but complete as well. I just stood transfixed while I watched this show in the sky, a gift from God, and gave him the glory.

I know there are weather-related reasons for rainbows, but God made the weather, too, and when I see such a glorious sight as that rainbow, my heart beats faster with joy and gratitude to God for this world in which we live. I remember that the rainbow is the sign of God’s promise that never again will he wipe out the world in a cataclysmic flood.

I am grateful that I live in a rural location, where I am more aware of the wonders of nature. In the book of Romans, Paul argues that those who don’t know about God can see him in his handiwork, but I wonder about those poor children living on garbage dumps in Brazil or Mozambique or inner city squalor in Los Angeles or London. Where do they look to see God’s glory?

 Hopefully, in the faces of Christians there to help them.

Shades of Grey

At heart, I am a hot-weather person. I love the freedom of only needing to wear one layer of clothing, possibly with bare feet, and knowing that you’ll be comfortable that way all day. 

Scotland is not a good fit for me in this regard. Here, I am already in my winter three-layer garb, which apart from hiding any unwelcome bulges has no other redeeming value. It is time-consuming to get dressed in the morning and undressed at night. Going out to walk the dog requires another two layers (fleece and wind-proof), knit hat, gloves, warm boots. I know, it sounds like the Arctic but I just prefer to be totally warm rather than slightly shivery at the start of a walk.

Having said that, the longer I live here (which is now over half of my life!) the more I appreciate the beauty of the place. I guess I may have commented on this before. Certainly my children quote me at times for voicing the thought that grey skies can be beautiful.

I hasten to clarify, not the solid weepy curtain of foggy cloud that crouches on the hill tops some days, but the variegated shades and textures and shapes I see in the skies most days. The light has a different quality here, and the way it plays on the clouds and brings out the various shades is endlessly changing and lovely. Throw in a rainbow every so often and it’s breath-taking in its own way.

A song just popped into my head – a song from the 60s. ‘Everything is beautiful, in its own way...’ How true that is. 

God, give me the eyes to see past my preconceived ideas to the beauty of landscape, of cityscape, of individuals. Thank you that yours is a perfect creation, marred for a time but redeemed by you and destined one day to reflect all the beauty that is you. Thank you for giving me an appreciative heart. May I grow to appreciate the world around me more every day. Amen.