Tammy On Tuesday ~ The Rainbow Behind Me

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The other evening, after a day of mostly overcast skies, I decided to join my sister in her back yard to watch the sunset. The clouds were finally moving out, and it was looking like the sunset was going to be beautiful. 

Truthfully, I just wanted to take in some of God’s beauty before the end of the day. I needed a dose of His majesty to recenter my thinking and minister to my tired heart. Quarantine has had a way of making me feel a little weary.  

We grabbed a cup of coffee and positioned our chairs for the best view of this heavenly display. Steph picked a worship set from her playlist, and music filled the back patio. It was going to be great.

As we got settled and the sun sunk below the blanket of clouds that had lingered all day, I noticed a smaller cloud still covering the sun. Its edges were golden and firey. It was as if the cloud could barely contain the majesty it veiled. Just a minute more, I thought, and we would be enjoying the warm evening rays of the sun.

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I turned to Stephanie and said, “Wouldn’t it just be our luck if the cloud covered the sun until it was all the completely out of sight?”  

The sun sunk, the cloud did too.  

It seemed the evening would not go as planned, after all. We just wanted to see the sun break through. We just wanted to enjoy a quiet evening sunset.

It’s the same in my everyday life.  Often, I hope to see “the Son” shine into all the areas of my life. Whether I’m fearful or confused or frustrated, I seek God and His beauty.

During this pandemic, I’ve been asking Him to reveal His plan because everything seems so uncertain. I want to hear His voice.  The fact is, I’m hearing A LOT of voices.  Many of them speak on God’s behalf.  How often do we wait on Him to speak?  How desperate are we to hear from Him?

Interestingly, I sometimes assume I know what God wants or how God will act, but until my heart, mind, and eyes are focused on Him, I will only make assumptions of His will. How can I know the heart of God if I’m not seeking Him intimately? Daily?

God speaks for Himself through scripture and prayer. 

In the same way that I have been looking for the Son in the questions that surround me, I was looking for the sun that night.

I’ve learned:

1. I should never act on our assumptions of what God would have me do – “because it’s the good Christian thing to do.” Instead, I should seek Him and where He is working daily. He is faithful to speak to my heart. Jeremiah 29:11-14a says, 

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the LORD.   But there’s something else.

2. When I seek God, I should not assume to know how God will come in. Isaiah 55:6-9 says  

Seek the LORD while he may be found;

call upon him while he is near;

let the wicked forsake his way,

and the unrighteous man his thoughts;

let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him,

and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.

For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

so are my ways higher than your ways

and my thoughts than your thoughts. 

Steph and I watched to see if the cloud would move. The song Waymaker began to play over the speakers. We sat listening to the words.  

“Way Maker”

You are here, moving in our midst

I worship You

I worship You

You are here, working in this place

I worship You

I worship You

You are

Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper

Light in the darkness, my God

That is who You are

You are here, touching every heart

I worship You

I worship You

You are here, healing every heart

I worship You

I worship You

You are here, turning lives around

I worship You

I worship You

You are here, mending every heart

I worship You

I worship You

You are

Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper

Light in the darkness, my God

That is who You are

Even when I don’t see it, You’re working

Even when I don’t feel it, You’re working

You never stop, You never stop working

You never stop, You never stop working

Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper

Light in the darkness, my God

That is who You are

That is who You are, Jesus

Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper

Light in the darkness, my God

That is who You are…

This moment afforded me an opportunity for encouragement as I remembered, no matter the circumstances, God was always at work. 

Sun or no sun, the Son is always shining.

It’s true. How many times had I watched God come through in a way that I wasn’t expecting?  

Turning my attention away from the horizon, I looked about me enjoying the sound of the breeze rustling in the trees, watching the birds foraging, and listening to their songs. Then, for some reason, I decided to look behind me. 

To my surprise, there was a rainbow! A rainbow? But there was no rain! Why would there be a rainbow? And how long had it been there? Had it been there all this time while we waited on the sun?  

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This moment was not lost on me. So many times I’m looking for God to come in. I’m looking for God to give me what I want or think I need. My hopes are often limited to what’s comprehendible or logical to me. Am I simply missing it altogether? Am I missing Him?

I want God to come in. 

Maybe I’m just not looking for Him His way.  

Do you know what I like about my surprise rainbow? A rainbow is a reminder that I serve a God of promise. No matter what I encounter, I am His and He is in control.  

The way He comes in will ALWAYS be better than what I asked for.

My heart was encouraged that God is at work beyond my expectations.  

Are you looking for God in His Word and in prayer? Are you in heavy pursuit of Him? Or do you simply have “good intentions” for all of that?  

Seek Him today. And when you do, set aside your assumptions of how He will come in.  

I promise you, my friend, He’s not only going to work. He already is at work.  Adjust your chair and look for Him to meet with you in whatever way He sees fit.