"Rain"

The forecast calls for lots of rain,

And I believe it in the main,

That droughty weather is a pain,

We’ll hope but wait and see.

Can’t always count on the weather man,

‘Cause though he does the best he can,

He’ll miss it and across the land,

No moisture yet will be.

We’ll pray and ask the Lord to send,

Please make it soon ‘cause we depend,

On all that from the skies descend,

Without it nothing grows.

Lord, green it up and make it lush,

And all complainers then will hush,

Then with feed we will be flush,

Lord, You know how it goes.

If you live close to the ground and soil,

And there you labor, sweat and toil,

You know how the dry can spoil,

All you’re working for.

And that’s why praying’s what we do,

And from the Good Book take our cue,

‘Cause in the end both me and you,

Should knock on heaven’s door,

Lord, let it rain some more.

“Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.” (James 5:17, NIV)

I can think of a lot of reasons why this worked for Elijah and not for me. He was a great prophet with a great anointing. The miraculous power of God followed him. He had a special relationship with God. But James just won’t let us off the hook on this one. He says Elijah was just like us, and his prayers produced incredible things. The takeaway is that we should raise our expectations and pray boldly, trusting God to answer.

Lord, help us pray with the fervency of Elijah, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Sarah Dean, used by permission. Thanks, Sarah, and God bless you.