The following article was published in the Arthur Graphic-Clarion in
September 2012.
This summer has been very dry! Perhaps I should have used two or three exclamation points there? It was hard to see the grass dying, the gardens struggling, and the crops in the field gasping for moisture. I sometimes wondered if the grass would ever return to the lush green color that we are used to in Central Illinois.
But then a couple of weeks ago we received a little rain, and then several days later it rained a little more, and then the remnants of hurricane Isaac showed up, and before you knew it the lawns began to come back to life. Even though we still need more rain to catch up to our yearly average, it was amazing to see how quickly the green was restored in our lawns.
In one way, this quick restoration has been a reminder for me about the restoring power that Jesus has! We see it often in scripture where someone’s life is barren, dry, and sometimes even dead, and Jesus restores them to life. In the story of Lazarus (John 11) Jesus raised him from the grave; in the story of the ten lepers (Luke 17:11-18) Jesus restores the people’s skin and heals them of leprosy; in the story of Bartimaeus (Mark 10:46-52) Jesus restores his sight from blindness; and the stories go on and on. We see it often in our own lives today as well; enter your restoration story here ____________.
In verse 25 of John 11 Jesus says, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.” You see, Jesus wants to see everyone restored to life. This is why he has promised eternal life in heaven to those who believe in him as God’s Son, repent of their sins, and place their faith in him as their Savior.
That restoration even takes place while we live in this world. We all have difficult times come into our lives. Times that we would describe as a drought or a very hard situation. Jesus wants to help us through those times and bring life and restoration to those dry times. We have prayed for rain this summer so that God’s creation could be restored, are we praying for that same type of restoration in our own lives? Jesus has the power to do it!
What would you define as a drought area in your life right now? Have you prayed for rain? Have you asked the one who is the resurrection and the life to bring restoration and life to you and that situation? The Lord is faithful and hears us when we call.
Pastor Glen Rhodes
Arthur Mennonite Church