My garden is thirsty. It's been two or three weeks since we've had measurable rain in these parts. The ground is becoming hard, and the lawns are turning brown.
What do you do when you need rain? You irrigate as much as you can. But then you wait. It's all you can do. It's heart breaking to watch crops wither in the field. But still we have to wait. Of course we pray for rain. We have to trust God to bring what we need when we need it. Sometimes that takes a lot of faith, to believe that God has it all under control and that we can truly trust him. But then, what choice do we have?
Today I heard thunder at my house and thunder at my farm. Clouds were all around, but I never saw a drop. It's still cloudy, but I hear no thunder now.
Sometimes when life is dry, we find rainless thunder. A glimmer of hope for relief that turns out to be empty. All we can do is wait and believe that God will provide what we need.
Years ago I talked with a farmer in Georgia during an extended drought. I asked him when he thought it would finally rain again. With a wry smile he said, "I don't know, but it's one day closer than it was yesterday."
