It was a delight to listen to the pouring rain last night. It’s been a very hot summer and we’d appreciate a downpour every now and then. I just wish that would happen during mid-day to make my rest more comfortable—to, in a way, bathe the oven!
A rainy day or a rainy night brings back many memories. Aside from the fun bathe in the rain when I was a kid, there was that elementary school nostalgia when I bring along my raincoat and have my teacher button my way to it since mom wouldn’t come pick me up.
Gone were the days of raincoats in high school. I brought along an umbrella. It’s funny how we show off our umbrellas and compare as to which was bigger, but it was always enjoyable when I get to share with friends, especially my crush (just pray that she didn’t bring along an umbrella).
I would rather not talk about my memory of rain in college. That took place in Manila, particularly in Espana in Sampaloc. A downpour would mean cancellation of classes as flashfloods rise faster than you think. You’d later find yourself stranded and if you want to go home, you have to trek your way through the dirty floodwaters. My birthdays always had to happen on a rainy day. We had to walk our way through the ‘swamp’ just to buy food to eat for the fete.
I lived through those days and looking back, I think I know & understand the importance of rain in my life. For me the rain is a symbol of God’s blessing. Moroni, a Book of Mormon prophet wrote about a certain “dearth” (famine) in the land when the people basked in wickedness (Moroni 9). “And it came to pass that there began to be a great dearth upon the land, and the inhabitants began to be destroyed exceedingly fast because of the dearth, for there was no rain upon the face of the earth” (v. 30). The famine occurred because of the absence of rain. Notice what happened when the people humbled themselves—only then did the Lord send rain. “And it came to pass that when they had humbled themselves sufficiently before the Lord he did send rain upon the face of the earth; and the people began to revive again, and there began to be fruit in the north countries, and in all the countries round about. And the Lord did show forth his power unto them in preserving them from famine” (v. 35). Because of the rain, “the people began to revive again, and there began to be fruit…..”. Notice the effect of rain among the people.
We all hear some people grumble about life’s difficulties. Sometimes the hardships lead to transgression of God’s laws. That is somehow extreme. Let us just say that because of life’s hardships, people tread on the paths of omission, not necessarily intending to disobey. While on that path, however, the things that are supposed to be done which aren’t done leads one away from God, thus the beginning of a more errant life. Then the “dearth” comes. There’s no more rain, just famine. People then die down and bear no fruit at all. Life becomes even less mediocre, if not useless and miserable.
When life becomes too unhappy and unfruitful, one would want rain to come as the Philistines of old (Gen. 27:28, Deut 33:13) to make their land fertile. Just as the dews of heaven come when we start to realize our mistakes and our lack, the rain follows when we stay on the path of recovery and become “sufficiently” humble. Then we become revived and once again, productive.
I want to think of rain as the gift of the Holy Ghost. We keep a dazzling “downpour” of this gift if we tread the paths of obedience & righteousness. Just as I remember how fun and joyful it was with my experience of rain in my youth, the same feeling vibrates as I remember the rainy days in my spiritual quest for happiness.
A rainy day or a rainy night brings back many memories. Aside from the fun bathe in the rain when I was a kid, there was that elementary school nostalgia when I bring along my raincoat and have my teacher button my way to it since mom wouldn’t come pick me up.
Gone were the days of raincoats in high school. I brought along an umbrella. It’s funny how we show off our umbrellas and compare as to which was bigger, but it was always enjoyable when I get to share with friends, especially my crush (just pray that she didn’t bring along an umbrella).
I would rather not talk about my memory of rain in college. That took place in Manila, particularly in Espana in Sampaloc. A downpour would mean cancellation of classes as flashfloods rise faster than you think. You’d later find yourself stranded and if you want to go home, you have to trek your way through the dirty floodwaters. My birthdays always had to happen on a rainy day. We had to walk our way through the ‘swamp’ just to buy food to eat for the fete.
I lived through those days and looking back, I think I know & understand the importance of rain in my life. For me the rain is a symbol of God’s blessing. Moroni, a Book of Mormon prophet wrote about a certain “dearth” (famine) in the land when the people basked in wickedness (Moroni 9). “And it came to pass that there began to be a great dearth upon the land, and the inhabitants began to be destroyed exceedingly fast because of the dearth, for there was no rain upon the face of the earth” (v. 30). The famine occurred because of the absence of rain. Notice what happened when the people humbled themselves—only then did the Lord send rain. “And it came to pass that when they had humbled themselves sufficiently before the Lord he did send rain upon the face of the earth; and the people began to revive again, and there began to be fruit in the north countries, and in all the countries round about. And the Lord did show forth his power unto them in preserving them from famine” (v. 35). Because of the rain, “the people began to revive again, and there began to be fruit…..”. Notice the effect of rain among the people.
We all hear some people grumble about life’s difficulties. Sometimes the hardships lead to transgression of God’s laws. That is somehow extreme. Let us just say that because of life’s hardships, people tread on the paths of omission, not necessarily intending to disobey. While on that path, however, the things that are supposed to be done which aren’t done leads one away from God, thus the beginning of a more errant life. Then the “dearth” comes. There’s no more rain, just famine. People then die down and bear no fruit at all. Life becomes even less mediocre, if not useless and miserable.
When life becomes too unhappy and unfruitful, one would want rain to come as the Philistines of old (Gen. 27:28, Deut 33:13) to make their land fertile. Just as the dews of heaven come when we start to realize our mistakes and our lack, the rain follows when we stay on the path of recovery and become “sufficiently” humble. Then we become revived and once again, productive.
I want to think of rain as the gift of the Holy Ghost. We keep a dazzling “downpour” of this gift if we tread the paths of obedience & righteousness. Just as I remember how fun and joyful it was with my experience of rain in my youth, the same feeling vibrates as I remember the rainy days in my spiritual quest for happiness.
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