By Evangelist John BJ Hall
You have seen the “Arch of Promise” in the sky after a rain storm. Its colors are glorious and its hues are rare. It is beautiful, but it will not last long. Soon the heat of the sun will beat down and dry up the droplets of moisture that are acting as a prism to create its beauty. The beautiful colors give way to fleecy clouds and the sky is no longer brilliant with the colors of Heaven. The rainbow is not established. It is not a solid thing. It is entirely dependent upon the right conditions for it to show itself again. But it cannot stay. The passing raindrops and the rays of sunshine change.
This should not be true with the Christian life and character. Our Christian character should be establish, stable, steady. Rooted and grounded in love. Everything we have should be devoted to God and His purposes.
Several years ago we took our grandchildren on a vacation to Florida. While we were there we visited Daytona Beach. While my wife and granddaughter and I were out in the water, our grandson stayed on the beach. He was digging a hole. But every time a wave came in it would erase the progress he was making on his project. The hole would fill with water and the sand would collapse into it. In a short time you couldn’t even tell there had ever been a hole there.
Our lives should not be like the sand hole or the footprints we left in the sand. Soon washed away by the water as the waves rolled in, they were transient. Our character should be chiseled into stone. Solid as a rock.
The Apostle wrote in 1 Peter 5:10 (NASB77) “And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you.”
Our faith should be such that when it is tested by fire, instead of wood, hay and stubble that will burn up and disappear, it will stand as the gold, silver and precious stone. Just as gold is refined and made pure by the refiners fire so our faith should be strengthened as we go through the trials of life. This will happen when we build our lives on the sure foundation of Jesus Christ and not on the wishful thinking of men.
It is no use to hope that we will still stand after the storm passes by if we haven’t trusted the tried and true cornerstone of Jesus Christ our Lord and salvation, our Deliverer.
The true Christian is rooted and grounded more deeply because of the storms and trials they have endured. We take hope that God is fulfilling His promise to us as we watch the storm in our lives.
When I was a child, my father and I were working together about a block from our house. I went out on the porch and saw a big storm and ran back to tell him. He came out and we grabbed the tools and headed home. By the time we arrived in front of the house the wind was blowing so hard that for every step I took it blew me back a step. Daddy turned around and picked me up and carried me into the house. As we got down on the floor in the hallway I looked up and saw that the storm had taken our roof and ceiling. Daddy sat there holding me, and I could rest knowing that he would not let go.
That’s the way it is with God. When the storms come and blow us backward for every step we try to take, He reaches down and covers us with His unseen hand and carries us to safety. He then holds us until the storm passes by.