Tests from the Rains--Believe in God

Christian Home Week, 2015

    There’s an interesting phrase in the Bible which says, “God sends the rain on the just and the unjust” (Matt. 5:45). That can be interpreted two ways, either He is good to both just and unjust people or He allow bad to happen to just and unjust people. Both are true.

     When we read about the storms that come to the two houses in this parable, we first hear about the rains. Rain can be both good and bad, but one thing is for sure: rain is necessary for life.

     Tests from heaven can also be good or bad, but when God is testing us, it is also for sure that it is necessary for our spiritual life. As Robin Williams’ character said in Jumanji in response to the truth, “A little rain never hurt anybody;” “Yeah,” he responded, “But a lot can kill you.”

     You may have experienced a test from God. If you are wise and have your house built on the Rock, it may not kill you, but even tests from the Lord may hurt you. God has a plan and purpose for every test that He places on you. The disciples went through a storm that rocked their world on the Sea of Galilee. As Jesus slept on the bow of the boat, the disciples came to Him and shouted above the wind and rain, “Master, don’t you even care that we are perishing,” (Mark 4:38).

     As this is Christian Home Week, tell your children about some of the storms God has brought you through. Tell them of mistakes (as long as they are not too embarrassing!), of victories, of lessons learned, of times when you thought perhaps God didn’t care if you were perishing. Show your kids the importance of prayer and time with God.

     If God our Heavenly Father tests us, then we as loving parents should put limitations and times of testing on our children, not so that they will fail, but so that they can learn the joys of victories.

     The tests from God are not so that we can fail, but so that we can learn and grow from them. Someone has said that Faith is not really faith until it is all you have. God wants you to be at a point where you are utterly dependent on Him.

     There was a man who was imprisoned in a dungeon during the reign of Napoleon. Alone and dejected, he carved the words in the wall, "Nobody Cares." But in a small little crack in the floor, there came a small little plant, which grew and leaned toward an equally small beam of sunlight from his prison window. The man gave a part of his daily water to the plant as it grew into a beautiful flower. In tears, he scratched out the word “nobody” and wrote “God.” The guards saw the writing and the words, “God cares” and it was eventually reported to Empress Josephine. She was so touched by the man’s plight and restoration of faith that she convinced Napoleon to set the man free.

     The rains you experience in life are not signs that nobody cares. God cares and how you respond in the storms and tests of life are going to reveal that God cares. A life based on hearing and heeding the words of Christ are going to be the foundation that keeps our house from falling in the rain and failing His testings.