BLOG: Rain

The drought in Elijah’s’ day was a strong message to the northern kingdom to forsake their idols and come back to God. Baal was not the god who brought rain – Yahweh was!

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“As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word” Elijah in I Kings 17:1.

There is lots of talk about climate change in the media these days. Of course, there has been much climate change throughout history – maybe Noah’s experience was the most rapid and far reaching of all! Throughout the Sahara Desert there are rock drawings like this one showing that things were once very different than they are now.  

It is true that the past few summers in Chilliwack have featured long dry stretches with no rain. When it is dry in a province like BC, we get forest fires and smoky air – it puts our crops at risk (I notice that the weeks still flourish) and we look to the sky for some much needed rain!

The drought in Elijah’s’ day was a strong message to the northern kingdom to forsake their idols and come back to God. Baal was not the god who brought rain – Yahweh was!  After three years of drought perhaps the people were ready to listen. You know the awesome story of the two altars – the 450 prophets of Baal versus Elijah alone – and how God showed Himself in power to the people. At the end of this – according to Elijah’s seven prayers – ‘the sky grew black with clouds, the wind rose, a heavy rain came on…’

Can you see the parallels with climate change in our own spiritual experience? Where we used to dance in the rain of God’s grace, over time we have become dry – in need of a fresh encounter with the Lord. Only God can give rain and it is to His Spirit that we say – ‘visit us afresh – pour over our parched souls and renew us once again!’ Let that be your prayer this week.

Have a listen to this selection from one of Keith Green’s famous songs – maybe you will resonate with it…

Pastor Leon Throness