“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:” Ecclesiastes 3:1 KJV
Paper and Pencils and Crayons – Oh My! Paper and Pencils and Crayons – Oh My! Paper and Pencils and Crayons – Oh My! Oh – back to school! It’s that time of year here in West Texas, in my neck of the woods. There is just something about new school supplies. I guess it’s really more about what they represent than the actual items themselves. They represent the idea of a new, clean start. It’s the excitement of new friends, a new teacher, and new opportunities. School supplies are almost like the harvest of the back to school season – ripe with possibilities and adventures just waiting to be picked.
Since the new school year is ripe with possibilities and adventures, some people can’t wait for school to start back. Others have not always had a great school experience and dread it. For me it is bittersweet. As a parent, what a blessing it is to have the privilege of watching your own children grow and develop. It is exciting to watch them grow into the beautiful masterpiece that God created them to be. However, it goes so fast. You wonder how your children somehow got this old so quickly. Where does the time go? I have yet to answer this question!
Back to school time is also bittersweet for me in another way. I am a teacher. The start of the school year also holds the excitement of a new year with new possibilities. Watching all your students grow and develop is such a joy. There is something almost magical when a child’s lightbulb goes off and they finally “get” a concept. However, starting the school year also means the end of the summer with my girls. As the school year begins though, the list of things that a teacher has to get done in order to be prepared for the upcoming year is so, so long. In fact, in most all cases, the list is so long it actually requires more time to complete than what is actually available. I know that every teacher can so easily get overwhelmed which leads to frustration which is amplified by exhaustion. But, teachers willingly power through, working many extra hours, knowing that all their hard work will be so worth it once they see all those students’ beautiful smiling faces back in school. As a teacher, you have the special task and privilege of making a difference in not only children’s lives but also the future. What a beautiful thing it is – and so worth it.
As our first day of school rolled around, it was actually raining that morning. This is a bit of a rare occasion in our area; it doesn’t rain here very often. I know what people were thinking as the day began – “Really! It has to rain on the first day of school?! What terrible weather to begin a new school year!” In fact, I teach at an early elementary campus and could hear my fellow teachers thoughts. “It’s the first day back and we can’t even take the kids outside for recess. They will need to go outside!” All early elementary teachers know exactly what I am talking about. But as teachers (and in life), we have to be flexible. The unexpected will happen; it is inevitable. So, we have or will come up with a plan B; sometimes plan C and even D. And…we will still have a great day! And all the teachers said “Amen”! OK – I’m moving on. So, my girls and I got ready and loaded everything in our vehicle and began the drive to school; and there it was. We saw something marvelous! Amongst the rain and dark grey clouds – a RAINBOW! Not just a slight ting of one either; but a bright, clear full rainbow which you could clearly see both ends of. Not only that, but then we saw that there was also a second rainbow! WOW! This is very rare in our area, we hardly ever see rainbows.
The girls and I looked at and talked about the rainbow on the way to our first day of school. As I was driving, God was whispering to me. He laid on my heart that just like a new school year is a new season with great possibilities in our life, there may also be seasons of storms. These stormy seasons are the trials on our battleground in life. These are the seasons in which He is refining us with his fire, and brewing something special in us. For these seasons, there may be storms, rain, and dark grey clouds; but, in the midst of these storms are rainbows of beautiful, bright colors – His promises.
“12 And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: 13 I do set my (rain)bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.” Genesis 9:12-13 KJV
God has so many promises that we can hold onto in the stormy seasons, or everyday for that matter. However, the one that He kept laying on my heart is that He will never leave us or forsake us. He is always there to help us.
“5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. 6 So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” Hebrew 13:5-6 KJV
So, when we are in the midst of stormy seasons in our lives; and, sometimes it feels like our trials are winning the war – you have a choice. We can focus on the storm with the rain and dark clouds; OR, we can focus on the rainbow – God’s promises. Rainbow Focus will concentrate on the fact that He is with us always; He will use the stormy seasons for good as He is refining us and brewing something special in us. There are many more of God’s promises that we can also focus on; maybe He will whisper a certain promise to you for your situation. Either way, will you choose to focus on the rain or rainbow? I challenge you to choose Rainbow Focus with me.
Let’s Brew!
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