the covenant

(colorful reflections)

he and i are doing a bible reading plan together, called the essential 100 (a plan of 100 passages of the bible that explain the fundamentals of christian history/beliefs). lately, we've been in genesis (we just started, can you tell?), and last week we talked about the flood. specifically, our reading led to questioning why God would want to wipe the whole human race (minus the Noah's) off the face of the planet and just start over. we discussed free will, and God's omnipotence; essentially, if he knows everything, then wouldn't he know that humans would be evil, and he would have to flood them out? why would he still create us if he knew that? and other questions, like how long did it take noah to actually build the ark?? (about 100 years, at absolute most, according to Gen 5-6).

i really like trying to figure this stuff out, especially with someone else on my side, and helping me think of things i haven't thought of before. one thing that we didn't really discuss, but he asked was: 'why does the essential 100 reading plan leave out the story of the rainbow, where God gives Noah the rainbow as a sign, or covenant, of His promise to never flood the earth again?' this was a good question to me, especially because the story of the flood and the rainbow is one of my earliest memories of sunday school, and the first experience i had of really knowing that God is good. as a kid, i couldn't see or feel God, but i could see a rainbow, and knowing who put it there was comforting to my soul. however, as i've grown older, i haven't given much thought to, or maybe just have taken for granted, rainbows after a rainstorm. especially since my 29 year old brain now understands how and why they appear. so, when he asked this question, my first response was, 'well, the rainbow is not essential to our beliefs as christians. we don't need to know about the covenant to believe in God, or Jesus, or the whole Gospel story. it's a great story, yes, and beautiful, and good to know, but not essential."

it's been raining like crazy here. the afternoon thunderstorms in colorado are the very best... about two or three o'clock on a hot, summer day, the dark, threatening clouds roll in, the thunder booms and the rain unleashes in torrents. it usually lasts just about twenty minutes or so, then passes, and the sun comes out, just like nothing ever happened. it's a beautiful thing, really, and everyone i know loves this part of summer.

i got caught in one of these storms the other day, driving home. after the storm past, while i was driving through the sunny, wet roads, i looked behind me via my passenger mirror. i caught a glimpse of something beautiful:

it was the brightest rainbow i'd ever seen, and it was amazing to see it in the reflection of my mirror... (cell phone pics don't do it justice). essentially, it was a reflection (the mirror) of a reflection (the rainbow).

a few minutes later, i saw the same rainbow, but from a different angle and caught a glimpse of it's shadowy counterpart, the double rainbow (all.the.way):

again, it was the brightest rainbow(s) i'd ever seen from my car, the rainbow started on the right (this picture), stretched across the sky, and ended on my left. it was one of those rare times i could see the whole, vast enormity of the whole rainbow, stretching across the sky and over the dark storm clouds, end to end. it was amazing.

and it got me thinking about the conversation he and i had just had, about the covenant of the rainbow, and how this beatuiful, natural sign is God's way of saying, 'hi. don't worry, i didn't forget you! you know that storm that was a little scary, the one that flooded the streets til the water hit your jeeps headlights just now? don't worry; i'll never let that storm win- although i could let it win, i won't.  although you may be sinful and not perfect on the inside, i will never forget, nor destroy you. don't forget me, as i won't forget you'.

those words, that reminder: i could use that every day. every, single, day. but it comes out rarely- just enough to remind me. just enough to fill my heart with gratitude and humility and love, for My Creator... who knows and loves me and will never, ever forget me.

and that makes me reconsider his question: why isn't the rainbow part of the essential 100?