The rain tapped the canvas in a steady rhythm, soothing Eldon’s mood. It had been a long, frustrating week of intense meetings and all he wanted to do was hide from the world.

However, he knew God had other plans.

Eldon unzipped the tent, opened the flap, and peered outside. Beads of water dripped off the picnic table. A spider fought against the weather as it climbed to the top of its web and disappeared under the bench.

If only life was that easy.

The campground remained blanketed in silence even though it was midday. Why did a little rain scare everyone into hiding?

Not him. He came here on a mission and wouldn’t let the weather stop him. After all, hadn’t God whispered in his ear and told him to pray for rain? The area had gone three and a half months without any precipitation. Lawns were parched, farmer’s crops withered in the hot sun, and nearby creeks had dried up.

Eldon shook his head. Why weren’t people dancing in the glorious drops from Heaven?

He didn’t know, but it was time for his mission to begin. Eldon stepped out of his tent, tucking his Bible under his jacket.

Which camper should he visit first? He glanced left, then right.

A raven cawed, flapping its wings before settling on top of a nearby camper.

Gotcha, Lord. Thanks.

Rain, rain, go away….come again another day! I remember singing that as a child. Still do! I found myself saying it a lot lately. How about this one?

It’s raining; it’s pouring.

The old man is snoring.

He fell out of bed and bumped his head,

And he couldn’t get up in the morning.

It’s funny how these come to mind when the heavens open up with a downpour. Do you wonder if that’s what happened when Elijah prayed for rain after three and a half years of drought?

Did it come down in buckets? Or was it a light summer rain? Did the people dance in it, not caring whether they got soaked?

We don’t know the answer to that question, but let’s take a look at Elijah’s story.

Elijah set out on a journey, trusting God to provide. God told Elijah to turn east and hide in a ravine. He also told him that he would drink from a brook and ravens would feed him. Say what? A bird would feed him? Shouldn’t it be the other way around? Elijah didn’t question what he heard from God and set out believing every word. Would we do the same? Do we listen to His voice or ignore it? This past weekend I felt Him telling me to do something even when I knew it would make me feel uncomfortable. However, I jumped out of my comfort zone and went on the journey, trusting God knew what He was doing. It’s tough but in the end well worth it. How about you? Is God whispering in your ear like He did Elijah? Let Him use the ravens to feed you.

Shout louder! God told Elijah to assemble all of Baal’s prophets and challenge them to a duel so to speak. Being the man of God he was, Elijah did just that. They built altars and Elijah told them to call upon their gods to set the wood on fire and he would do the same. “The god who answers by fire—he is God.” So, the prophets began to pray to their gods. Nothing happened. I love this part—Elijah taunted them by saying, “Shout louder!” Nothing. Then just to rub it in, Elijah poured buckets of water on the wood not just once, but three times. Then he prayed. We know what happened. God answered and the wood caught fire and even “licked up the water in the trench.” Don’t ya just love that? Once again, Elijah took a step of faith and trusted God would come through. Are there times in life when we need to shout louder? Take a bold leap and yell from the mountaintops!

Elijah prayed from his knees. God told Elijah to pray for rain. It was time for the three and a half years of drought to end. Elijah climbed a mountain and fell to knees, praying hard for God to replenish their land. He not only prayed once, but seven times before the rain finally came. This tells me that he was a prayer warrior. Are we? I don’t know about you, but this is an area in which I lack obedience. However, recently I’ve taken up the challenge—a 40-day one. I’m doing the Prayer Circle with some folks across North America. Gotta say, it’s worth getting up earlier every morning to do it. Not only is it disciplining me to pray, but I’m really focusing in on my prayers. God is leading me to pray bolder. Leaving my requests with Him and trusting He will answer them—in His time. How about you?

Do we complain too much about the “rain” in our lives? Are we praying for that rain to stop? Perhaps God is using it to teach us something.

How about we trust Him and be bolder in our Christian walk? Pray harder. Ask Him to let it rain harder.

Rain, rain, don’t go away!

Tell us about a time where you felt God whispering to you. What did you do? I’d love to hear about it!

1 Kings 18:42 (NIV)

“So Ahab went off to eat and drink, but Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel, bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees.”

Bring the Rain by MercyMe

This song is new to me. The words are powerful. Listen to this. Wow!

And I know there’ll be days
When this life brings me pain
But if that’s what it takes to praise You
Jesus, bring the rain.