Did you know that earth is the only planet that has rainbows? Astronomer Guillermo Gonzalez recently noted that we’re on the only planet in the Solar System to get them. Rainbows form from suspended water droplets in the atmosphere that are hit by the direct sunlight when the sun is located between the horizon and 42 degrees altitude. This typically occurs just after a thunderstorm has passed and small droplets are still in the atmosphere, and the sky is clearing in front of the sun. No other planet has enough sunlight and moisture to produce the rainbow effect. We get amazing rainbows in the Outer Banks.

From a biblical perspective, God set the rainbow in the sky for one reason: To anchor his promise of a covenant relationship with us: 

Genesis (Common English Bible)

9 ¹² And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: ¹³ I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.¹⁴ Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, ¹⁵ I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. ¹⁶ Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”

This Scripture is a beautiful reminder to us that God is near when our hope has dried out. This Scripture is a beautiful reminder to us that God is near when our wisdom fails us. This Scripture is a beautiful reminder to trust that God is always near! When we feel helpless and find ourselves at a loss for what to do next, when some aspect of our joy has flamed out and we can’t reignite the spark anymore, and when something has truly died in us, that is when we need to remember that God can bring anything back to life by simply saying the word.

Your dead dreams, your lifeless marriage, your dry relationship with your teenager, your wasteland of a career, your hollow bank account, your terminal battle with addiction … even the division that daily is destroying our country … God can breathe life into all of these places. Jesus, the Word that was with God in the beginning, the Word that was God, is where we can place our hope and trust. Jesus’ resurrection from the dead ensures our eternal life. Because he lives, we shall live also.

So the next time you feel as though all the light has gone out of your life, look up. God can and will breathe new life by the power of his word into whatever you’ve lost. You can count on his promises.

From Heaven to Earth