01/30/2022 - Eternity in the Rain, and the Dew
When I was making a garden with my father-in-law, there were days when we would pray for rain, because we knew that if our plants went without it for any period of time they would wither and die. The ground needed a good drink to replenish itself, but our plants could sustain themselves between the rains if they received a heavy dew. This is true of our spiritual growth as well. We need regular rains to replenish the spiritual soil in which our souls grow strong, and thrive, but if we gather nightly dew we can sustain ourselves until the rains fall on us again... until the Holy Spirit falls full upon us and glorifies the Lord.
“I will be like the dew to Israel; he shall blossom like the lily; he shall take root like the trees of Lebanon; his shoots shall spread out; his beauty shall be like the olive, and his fragrance like Lebanon.”
Hosea 14:5-6 ESV
So often we convince ourselves that there is no help for us except that which comes from a quenching rain from Heaven. We grow despondent when it doesn’t fall and say to ourselves “Surely my faith is dying within me!”, but do not lose heart, God provides sustenance for our soul if we will only still ourselves, and spread our arms to receive it. Yes, we sing and dance in joy when the rains come, and we thank God for His Holy Spirit in these times, but not every day comes with plenty… most simply come with enough. Most days we rise to find the ground covered in dew, but are we satisfied with what the Lord has provided us during the night?
“In the evening quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning dew lay around the camp. And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as frost on the ground. When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat.”
Exodus 16:13-15 ESV
The rains cause our plants to grow quickly, and our spirits to quench their thirst for God, and Jesus Christ. In the rainy seasons we lift our fruiting branches toward Heaven in thanksgiving, and rejoice. The rain in this season is more than enough as it beats against our tents, and much of what falls will run off into the rivers. But on the other hand, the dew comes quiet in the night, and is just enough to sustain our life; it is provision for a day, and comes fresh every morning.
“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
Lamentations 3:22-23 ESV
In the times between rains we send our roots deep into the ground in search of moisture, but each night we still ourselves in God, and rise in the mornings to find that we are refreshed by the taste of the dew.
“Then I thought, ‘I shall die in my nest, and I shall multiply my days as the sand, my roots spread out to the waters, with the dew all night on my branches, my glory fresh with me, and my bow ever new in my hand.’”
Job 29:18-20 ESV
We should never question God between the rains, but instead, we should rise up early each morning and gather in the dew, and harvest the manna that it leaves behind for us. Unlike the rain that saturates the ground, and provides for many days, the dew is our provision, and our nourishment, for a single day. Both of these come from God, and are by His grace alone, but each serves a different purpose as His will is done. We need both to be healthy in our faith… the roar of a driving rain, and the silence of a gentle dew. God provides both, and can easily take them away if we are disobedient.
“Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” And the word of the Lord came to him:”
1 Kings 17:1-2 ESV
Some of us believe that only the full force rain of God can refresh us, and thus neglect the dew which is spread for us by the Holy Spirit. While others of us look only towards a quiet Spirit, and lose sight of the value in a quenching downpour. In fact we need both, one to bring rapid growth and fruit, and the other to send our roots deep, and harden us in preparation for times of drought.
Prayer:
Father, thank you for bringing the rains to grow us in faith, and to replenish the water in the ground. Thank you too for the dew which nourishes us each day, and sends our roots deep in search of the water that remains there. Rainwater brings us joy, and sometimes causes us to feel we are self-sufficient, but surviving on the dew brings us to our knees before you. Help us to seek you always. Give us drink from your palm each morning, and feed us each day from your hand. Tame our unruly spirits as we come humbly to you to drink in the dew, and eat the manna you have prepared for us. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you our God who is bold in the times of plenty, but draws us gently close in the hard times when we rely on dew of Christ to drink, and manna of His body to eat. When your rain falls in abundance we thank you for the living water that flows into the rivers, and we ask that you lead us to be baptized in it. But, when the dry seasons come, we ask you to open our hearts and eyes more fully to your Son Jesus Christ who is a quiet dew that strengthens us for the journey ahead… giving us His redeeming blood to drink, and His broken body to nourish us in eternal life. Find us worthy in the rain, and dew alike Father. Purify us in them, and seat us at your table forevermore.
Rich Forbes