I was sitting in the sunroom early one morning listening to the rain falling on the roof. Sometimes the raindrops fell with a gentle tapping, sometimes with a rhythmic drumming. On our Virginia home we had a tin roof. There was no insulation and during a heavy rain it fell on the roof with a dull and deafening roar. In summer when our bedroom window was open after a rain the droplets fell on the tin porch roof with an incessantly intermittent plink, plink, plink, interrupting our sleep. We closed the window.

Raindrops fall and the water pools, making puddles, creating ever widening circles. And the raindrops that pelt a window pane do a choreographed dance.

I like to sit in the shelter of the front porch during a summer thunderstorm. However, if the thunder is accompanied by lightning I am discerning enough to stay inside and watch from the window. I enjoy listening to the rumble of thunder, the sound and the scent of the falling rain.

The rhythmic pattering of the rain can be soothing. Take time to listen to the rhythm of the falling rain. Watch the raindrops dance on your window pane and ripple in the still water which has puddled. It may just refresh your spirit as it does mine.

Rain is a gift of God given without discrimination.

“…he makes his sun to shine on bad and good people alike, and gives rain to those who do good and those who do evil” (Matthew 5:45b, GOOD NEWS BIBLE, Today’s English Version).

“May the road rise to meet you. May the wind be always at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face and the rain fall soft upon your fields. And until we meet again, may God hold you in the hollow of his hand” (An Irish Blessing).

written by Dr. Darryl E. Maxwell, Retired Baptist Pastor