Silas
Beloved of All
Your prayer for rain in this unusually hot and dry summer has been heard, and we join you in bringing this need before the Lord. To watch the ground around your home dry and shrink, to see cracks form in the walls and the floorboards settle and drop, is distressing, and it is right to ask God to refresh and heal the land.
Scripture teaches that God alone governs the heavens. He can shut them so that no rain falls, as He did in the days of Elijah when the prophet announced to the wicked king that there would be no dew or rain except by his word, and for more than three years the land became parched. Yet the same God who withholds rain is the one who promises to send it. He told Elijah to show himself again because He was about to send rain upon the earth. Elijah believed that promise, and that is why he went up and prayed so persistently, sending his servant toward the sea again and again until a cloud appeared. He prayed seven times for rain because he had the assurance of God's word that rain would come.
That example encourages us in your situation. There are no idols or empty rituals among the nations that can make rain fall. The prophet Jeremiah asked, are there any among the worthless idols of the nations that can cause rain, or can the heavens give showers by themselves. Only the Lord our God can do it, for He has made all things, and therefore we wait upon Him. Even when the ground is cracked and hard, when the plowmen are ashamed and all creation suffers from drought, we look to Him alone to open the heavens.
Your experience with your house also brings to mind what Scripture says about foundations. A house must have a solid foundation, and when the soil dries out the visible structure suffers. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 3:11 that no other foundation can be laid than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. People try to build on other things, but the church and every life must be built upon Him. He is the true foundation. When our lives are built on Christ, even when outward circumstances shake and the ground beneath us seems to shift, we have a foundation that does not move. We are called to take care how we build upon it, building with what will endure when tested.
So we will continue to pray with you and for you, asking the Lord in His mercy to send rain to water the earth, to restore moisture to the soil around your home, and to bring relief from the heat. We ask Him to guard your home from further damage and to give you peace as you wait on Him. We trust His timing and His goodness, knowing He hears those who call upon Him through His Son.
Father, we come before You in the name of Jesus Christ, Your Son. You alone have power over the heavens and the earth. We ask You to have mercy and to send rain upon this dry land. Refresh the ground, heal what has been cracked and strained, and provide what is needed for this home and family. Strengthen faith as we wait upon You, and keep our lives firmly built upon Christ, the only true foundation. We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Scripture teaches that God alone governs the heavens. He can shut them so that no rain falls, as He did in the days of Elijah when the prophet announced to the wicked king that there would be no dew or rain except by his word, and for more than three years the land became parched. Yet the same God who withholds rain is the one who promises to send it. He told Elijah to show himself again because He was about to send rain upon the earth. Elijah believed that promise, and that is why he went up and prayed so persistently, sending his servant toward the sea again and again until a cloud appeared. He prayed seven times for rain because he had the assurance of God's word that rain would come.
That example encourages us in your situation. There are no idols or empty rituals among the nations that can make rain fall. The prophet Jeremiah asked, are there any among the worthless idols of the nations that can cause rain, or can the heavens give showers by themselves. Only the Lord our God can do it, for He has made all things, and therefore we wait upon Him. Even when the ground is cracked and hard, when the plowmen are ashamed and all creation suffers from drought, we look to Him alone to open the heavens.
Your experience with your house also brings to mind what Scripture says about foundations. A house must have a solid foundation, and when the soil dries out the visible structure suffers. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 3:11 that no other foundation can be laid than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. People try to build on other things, but the church and every life must be built upon Him. He is the true foundation. When our lives are built on Christ, even when outward circumstances shake and the ground beneath us seems to shift, we have a foundation that does not move. We are called to take care how we build upon it, building with what will endure when tested.
So we will continue to pray with you and for you, asking the Lord in His mercy to send rain to water the earth, to restore moisture to the soil around your home, and to bring relief from the heat. We ask Him to guard your home from further damage and to give you peace as you wait on Him. We trust His timing and His goodness, knowing He hears those who call upon Him through His Son.
Father, we come before You in the name of Jesus Christ, Your Son. You alone have power over the heavens and the earth. We ask You to have mercy and to send rain upon this dry land. Refresh the ground, heal what has been cracked and strained, and provide what is needed for this home and family. Strengthen faith as we wait upon You, and keep our lives firmly built upon Christ, the only true foundation. We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
