Sundown Devotional: The Rainbow in the Clouds

MsDora, a former teacher and Christian counselor, presents practical Scriptural principles for joyful everyday living.

Sundown: Time to Relax, Reminisce, Reflect

Rainbows in Poetry and Prayers

Be thou (God) the rainbow in the storms of life. ― Lord Byron

Oh, God of Dust and Rainbows,
Help us to see
That without the dust the rainbow
Would not be.
― Langston Hughes

My heart leaps up when I behold
A rainbow in the sky:
So was it when my life began;
So is it now I am a man.
― William Wordsworth

Let me, O let me bathe my soul in colours;
Let me swallow the sunset and drink the rainbow.
― Khalil Gibran

Two bubbles found they had rainbows on their curves.

They flickered out saying:
"It was worth being a bubble, just to have held that rainbow thirty seconds.” ― Carl Sandburg

The Devotional

It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud. (Genesis 9:14 NKJV)

Rainbows in my childhood seemed more frequent and more brilliant, although it may not be so. They still hang from the sky like a drop-down from God’s universal menu to remind us of His love, His control and His protection over the earth.

I remember my cousin yelling in our childhood front yard for me to come outside and watch the rainbow. As I walked toward her, she was looking in the opposite direction. The rainbow was behind me, and yes, it was worth the turning around.

What part of God’s awesomeness do we not see because we need a mental turn around? Do we sometimes miss the rainbow in the cloud?

Within the cloud of regret brought on by the memory of our past misdeeds, there is also the promise of God’s forgiveness. Do we need to change our focus, so we could watch Him change the view from dark to bright?

And within that cloud of anxiety brought on by the service deeds God has placed in our feeble hands to do, is also the promise of His grace. It is sufficient to complete what He started in us.

Let’s carry a rainbow in our minds and allow it to remind us of God’s attributes: love, joy, peace, hope, healing, grace and redemption. Those who position themselves to see God’s rainbow in the clouds, will find and benefit from His promises.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, as we appreciate your handiwork, from the formation of the clouds to the display of the rainbow, please revive us with Your presence, Your love and Your power. We thank You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Meditative Rainbow Quotes

1. You'll never find a rainbow if you're looking down. ― Charlie Chaplin
2. When it rains on your parade, look up rather than look down. Without the rain, there would be no rainbow. ― G. K. Chesterton
3. After every storm, there is a rainbow. If you have eyes, you will find it. If you have wisdom, you will create it. ― Shannon L. Alder
4. I see rainbows where others see only rain, and possibilities when others see only problems. ― Sharon M. Draper
5. This is my wish for you: Comfort on difficult days, smiles when sadness intrudes, rainbows to follow the clouds. ― Ralph Waldo Emerson
6. Life throws challenges and every challenge comes with rainbows and lights to conquer it. ― Amit Ray
7. We may run, walk, stumble. drive, or fly, but let us never lose sight of the reason for the journey, or miss a chance to see a rainbow on the way. ― Gloria Gaither
8. Formal education teaches how to stand, but to see the rainbow you must come out and walk many steps on your own. ― Amit Ray
9. There is no envy, jealousy, or hatred between the different colors of the rainbow. And no fear either. Because each one exists to make the others’ love more beautiful. ― Aberjhani
10. Try to be a rainbow in someone's cloud. ― Maya Angelou

Rainbow Poll

More Sundown Devotionals

• Sundown Devotional: God's Rhetorical Question About Worry
  Why worry? Let’s keep God's rhetorical question at the back of our minds, and let our actions demonstrate that we know and believe the answer. We can help each other worry less and pray more.
• Sundown Devotional: Searching Takes Time
  One quick search will not yield all we need or all we can get to improve our lives. It takes time. Is the intensity of our desire to find reflected in the intensity of our search?
• Sundown Devotional: Thriving on Testimonies
  The testimony is personal.It doesn’t begin with “Some people” or "We have to.” It is a simple declaration of faith (evidence) which encourages both the speaker and the listener to thrive.What's yours?

© 2019 Dora Weithers