Look, a Rainbow

It has been a while since I've written. Too long, I must apologize. I am rarely one for excuses but somehow life got in the way of things I suppose. A lot has happened since my last post. Perhaps most notably, I moved to Nashville and started college at Vanderbilt University!!! A dream come true! I wish there were words to sum up how much has happened over these last 10 months. What a journey it has been-- one of faith, self-discovery, and friendship to say the least. It has been a great journey so far and I still have a long, exciting road ahead of me!

God has held my hand with every step and has blessed me tremendously along the way. There is so much comfort in knowing that God is with me wherever I go!! It is awesome to look back over the past year and see just how He has worked and provided in my life. He has met me in life's smallest details and biggest challenges. He has walked with me on rainy days and every day fills my heart with the warmth of His sunshine. He has given me the gift of love by crossing my path with others who share a heart for Him-- professors, friends, scholars, strangers. There was never a minute I felt unloved; so many faces and memories come to mind when I think about my most precious, intimate encounters with God over this past year.

I am still trying to figure out where the time goes. I started school, I blinked, the year ended. Yesterday I moved out and drove home to Ohio. It's great to be home, but a piece of my heart is still in Nashville.

Yesterday was special. "Last days" are always special, but yesterday was extra special. My dad, sister and I were on the drive home when all of a sudden we noticed a full, clear, bright, beautiful rainbow in the sky!!! We kept driving, "ooo-ing" and "awe-ing" at it and hating when a batch of trees would block our view.

I urged Dad pull off so we could get a good long look before it disappeared. He took the next exit and pulled into the empty parking lot of a "Sad Sam" fireworks store. The view of the rainbow was spectacular, although it did not last too long. Within five minutes the rainbow was gone.

Rainbows are rare, and every time we see one it carries meaning. I can recall almost every rainbow I've seen-- the day, the circumstance, the blessing. The day my great grandmother died, God sent us a rainbow. The day we sold our house in Gatlinburg, God sent a rainbow. The day my sister's first pet died, God sent a rainbow.

This rainbow was no different. It came on a day that was my last day of college--a day marking the end to a great beginning God has written in my book of life. The rainbow was God's perfect way to remind me of His promise, His power, His purpose, His perfection, and His protection.

"I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth." Genesis 9:13

Promise. The rainbow is God's visible token to Noah that He will never again destroy the world with a flood. God's promises are inviolable and are always good. 2 Corinthians talks about how all of Gods promises are "yes." When we say "yes" and stand in the light of His promises, we will be blessed.

Power. The rainbow speaks to the power of its creator. God, in all His splendor and sovereignty, is capable of that which is unthinkable and impossible. He didn't just destroy the world-- He restored the world. There is nothing too broken that He cannot fix. We need not worry, God is in control.

Purpose. I love the illustration that the rainbow paints- there must be rain. Even in our rainiest of seasons, in our darkest of days and in our deepest despairs, God can create something beautiful. Rainbows give us hope that God is at work to fulfill His purpose in everything and His plan for our lives. Our natural tendency as humans is to place hope in the wrong places. The rainbow says that we are to put our trust in God alone.

Perfection. God's handiwork is flawless because He is perfect. A rainbow is essentially an arc of concentric colored bands evident when light is refracted through raindrops at specific critical angles between 40 degrees and 48 degrees. God obviously cares about the details! Rainbows amaze me. They are scientifically complex and yet so simple to the observer's eye. God's love is like that, too-- incredibly intricate and easy to receive.

Protection. The rainbow stretches around the entire sky; everything under it is under God's protection. The laws of physics make it impossible to walk under a rainbow or find its end. God's security operates under no conditions for those who walk with Him. His protection has no bounds; His love has no limit; His faithfulness is everlasting.

In the words of William Wordsworth, "My heart leaps up when I behold a rainbow in the sky!" I like to think that it's God's favorite way of sending me a smile.

-Rachel