Dear Family and Friends,

Something special happened this week as I was praying – asking God what He wanted to say to us.

A rainbow suddenly appeared a short distance away.

As I started to reflect on God’s promises, a squall came out of nowhere. What was mist turned into a downpour. And the wind started howling.

It seemed like a metaphor of the many changes in the past two months.

If you feel like you’re in the midst of a storm that came out of nowhere, you are not alone.

Later that same morning, a Christian radio station host commented that the many who were calling in and asking for prayer – were fearful.

Just the evening before, a friend who sits on the board of a local Hongwanji shared that many of their members were struggling with anxiety.

Let me take a moment to clarify why I’m writing this.

This message is not a commentary on the recent changes in our government. It’s a message for those who struggle with change. 

Most of us struggle with change, even if we want change. 

The anxiousness we feel primarily stems from a fear of the unknown.

Let’s now return to the rest of my rainbow story.

What happened next shocked me. Although I could barely see through the rain to across the valley, that rainbow never wavered.

The rainbow just would not move or dissipate. I expected that it would – but when the wind and the rain subsided, that rainbow was still shining brightly.

It felt like God was saying, no storm will ever keep me away from you…

There’s a well-known verse in Romans 8:31 that says, “If God is for us, who can be against us?”

The lesser-known verses that follow are for us today.

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?
 
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  Romans 8:35, 38-39 NIV

Change is hard – – but let us never forget that we are not alone.

God said He will never leave us nor forsake us. And that’s a promise.

In love always,