Clearing the Air

One of my older friends at church entered today looking particularly perky. I greeted her and we had a brief conversation before Sunday School. She was pretty happy about the rain. It hadn't seemed to me like a particularly beautiful or warm or otherwise pleasant rain. But her lungs sometimes give her troubles, and this new weather system had been clearing the air. With the newly cleaned atmosphere, this dear woman was breathing easily and feeling quite well.

I've been thinking about that all day now. I think of the murkiness that sometimes builds up in my life. Pollution in relationships fits this category. Most of it isn't big hairy things, but rather a slow collection of "little" offenses that, if collected, color the world gray. And sometimes even otherwise-good things can become smog material, if it distracts from that which is most important.

I pray that God will continue to send cleansing "rains" to our souls, washing away the muck which so easily clogs our minds, purifying our hearts and bringing life-giving breath from God.