“And the Lord God said to Noah, This is the sign of the covenant which I set between me and you, and between every living creature which is with you for perpetual generations. I set my rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of covenant between me and the earth. And it shall be when I gather clouds upon the earth, that my rainbow shall be seen in the cloud. And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you, and between every living soul in all flesh, and there shall no longer be water for a flood, so as to blot out all flesh.” (Gen 9: 12-15)
So, a “rainbow in a cloud” is a special “sign of covenant,” of a certain kind of agreement, understanding, or, simply put, “connection” that God has with us. Really there are countless “signs” in God’s created world, which point us to Him as our common Creator, if we have the eyes to see. But we don’t always have those eyes, as Simon and Garfunkel note in their brilliant song, “My Little Town”: “And after it rains, there’s a rainbow, / And all of the colors are black, / It’s not that the colors aren’t there, / It’s just imagination they lack, / Everything’s the same back / In my little town.”
Today I’m reminded that God has His “signs” all over the place, as the Holy Spirit continues to “rain” and pour out His mercy most abundantly on “my little town.” Everything is never “the same,” from day to day, in the abundance of “colors” God shows me in the people, places and things He brings my way. Let me be both grateful and teachable today, that I can learn more about His presence and grace in our midst.
