Your Roots Are Showing

     root

- 

noun

a part of the body of a plant that develops...... and grows downward into the soil, anchoring the plant and absorbing nutriment and moisture.

One thing I love about summer and take most of the responsibility for is      mowing. I love it more, now that we have a riding lawn mower!

Our yard has several trees, and has somewhat of a slope to it. 

I've noticed the past several times that I've mowed, more roots seem to appear, and are steadily rising their heads above ground. Of course, this is due to rain after rain. 

e·rode

 

verb (used with object), e·rod·ed, e·rod·ing.

1.

to eat into or away; destroy by slow consumption or disintegration

As storms sweep through over time, whether strong or mild, the dirt gradually erodes away, exposing those roots.

This is a problem for me as I mow; I fear running over one of them and ruining our lawn mower, for starters! I might get fired from my job if that happens!

So, I have to dodge the roots, making my job more difficult. Even with the push mower, I cannot just run over them. These roots are pretty strong!

While mowing a couple of weeks ago, it occurred to me that this is a picture of life when the storms come.

Storms are meant to expose our roots. Don't believe me? 

Trials and Temptations

James 1:2-4

New International Version 

^2-4 Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.

Not my words :)

As the rain falls, it sometimes erodes all that is around us. It tries to destroy and consume that which is comfortable to us. It can eat away at those things in our lives like our joy. 

Yet bursting through, our roots can show!

They can hinder Satan from doing the job that he tries to do. Yes, he may hit one with the blade of his lies, but when we are deeply rooted in the word, he cannot destroy us. 

I'm reminded of Psalms 1:1-3

 Blessed is the one
    who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
    or sit in the company of mockers,
 but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
    and who meditates on his law day and night.
 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
    which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—

    whatever they do prospers.

One version says like a tree "firmly planted." 

I know some people like this. The storms have ravaged their lives, eroding away what was "normal," and now they face a "new" normal. Yet, out of the mud and mire their roots burst forth. They are firmly planted, and their  roots of faith are evident. That's not to say it was easy or they never got scraped by the blades. But, through the storms, they have stood tall. (Psalms 40- He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear the Lord and put their trust in him.)

Oh, I pray my roots will always show!

(Speaking of, I've got to go hi-light my hair now.)

³ 

Rainbow Bright

I woke up this morning with no clue that I would drive through a storm today. It was a beautiful day in my neighborhood, sunny days, sweeping the clouds away......
My "plans" were interrupted when Jason's mom called that Presley was sick. Let me back up. This is "Camp Nana" week. "Camp Nana" is when the grandkids come to Nana's for "camp."
It's legit. There's a schedule. There's worship, recreation, crafts, snack, science (just added this year!), and of course free time. 
So, my four days of kid-free-ness ended when she called to tell me Presley was sick, running fever, throwing up, etc, etc. 

I looked at the weather radar (because I'm old like that) before I headed out of town to go get her, and I noticed some red and yellows on Tim Simpson's map. I was hoping it would miss the path I was traveling though.

As I approached Olive Branch, I saw a gray sky, spilt with a little break of lighter skies, but certain rain to the right. Then, the closer I got, the line of rain was evident as I could see where it wet the road I was traveling. As soon as I crossed the "line," the wipers went to the high setting, and my speed slowed to 35-40 mph, as I could hardly see the road. I nervously drove, with an 18 wheeler beside, maybe only a hundred or so yards before I could see a bright yellow circle shining through the gray. Then, before I knew it, I was stopped at a red light and it was only barely sprinkling. I thought to myself, as now the sun shone brightly ahead of me, "There's got to be a rainbow from that one." Driving on for about a half a mile or so, I glanced in my passengers side mirror, and there it was. As I approached another red light, I strained my neck to look out my window, and as I did, I saw the other end of the rainbow. I pulled over to take a picture.

I could see the whole thing, but couldn't get a good picture of it with my phone. 
The picture doesn't do it justice. It was so bright against the gray clouds.
I got back on the road, still going away from it, and thought about all the travelers heading in the opposite direction and what a sight they were seeing!

As I thought about these things, it of course made me think of storms we go through. 
I wasn't expecting a storm when I woke up this morning. Most of us don't expect those storms that come in our lives, either. 
As I approached it, the lighter area of sky I saw was where the sun was shining. Even as the clouds of tragedy, hurt and struggles seem to cover us sometimes, the Son is still there, still shining. 
Sometimes our storm gets so overwhelming, so intense, that we can't even see the road we're on, or the next step in front of us. Then, bursting through the darkness, the Son shines so brightly, making the way clear.

This next analogy is where the Lord spoke the loudest to me:

We can't see the rainbow until the sun (Son) hits our storm head-on. The sun has to come face to face with the rain in order for us to see the rainbow. 
I couldn't see the rainbow until I had passed through the storm, to the other side where the sun was shining. That rainbow was probably there while I was driving through that same storm; I just couldn't see it in the storm. 

Did I know the sun was there while driving in the downpour? Yes. 
Did I know the rain would eventually end? Yes.
Did I see the rainbow while driving in the downpour? No.

As I made my way out the other side of the storm, to sunny skies, it's very likely I might have never seen the rainbow, had I not been looking for it. 
I could've kept riding along, never looking back, and I would have missed it!!

But, yes, I knew I had been through a storm; yes, I knew the sun was shining on the other side, and I knew what that meant: there would be a rainbow.

And oh, how bright it was!! It's colors were vibrant against those gray clouds!

As I drove on, I thought about those travelers heading in the opposite direction as me. Even if I had not noticed the rainbow, they sure would have. I wonder how often we go through storms, and miss the rainbows; yet, others see us come out of a storm, and they share in the promises that could be ours, too, if we just look for them.

I look back over my storms. So many promises that I claim today are those that He made so brilliantly clear in the rainbows against the gray skies that were just barely behind me. 

As I was on the way back with Presley, I told her I had this idea for a blog and some of the little lessons I learned. 
She added, with fever and all, "You can't have a rainbow without rain."

How many rainbows have you missed seeing after your storms? Look for them!
They are probably there!

Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.

Hebrews 10:23