For a little over a year now, our family has been living near Palm Springs, California where my husband, Tim grew up. If you haven’t heard of it before, well . . . it’s a desert. And this year has been particularly hot, reaching record high temperatures. We’ve prayed for rain, but the Lord has not seen fit to send it until this weekend. It’s been more than two hundred days without rain.
Well it didn’t exactly pour, but the temperatures plummeted into the 40s at night, and we felt a little sprinkling during the day on Saturday, November 7—the day Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were confirmed as president-elect and vice president-elect.
This morning as we drove to church, the sky was clear over the desert, but rain clouds were visible over the mountains as we headed west on the freeway. A rainbow on the north side of the road, low to the ground and shining brightly, was covered by a drifting brown cloud from the south side. It was a strangely beautiful image, marred by the presence of smoke.
As we drew closer, the kids stared, yelled, pointed at the fire to our left. We could see a few flames and billowing smoke amongst the desert’s windmills. “But look!” I called back. “Look at the rainbow! It’s so bright, and now it’s a full bow. It’s touching the ground on both sides!” To our right was a breathtaking sight as every color stood out in all its glory, and the top of the bow was even shorter than the nearby foothills.
But they wouldn’t give it more than a cursory glance.
“They’re too distracted by the fire,” Tim said. And he was right.
After another attempt to turn their attention away from the smoke, I gave up. What was a rainbow next to such a disaster?
We drove between the mirrored sights, the irony of it not lost on us.
It occurred to me as the car was soon covered in dark rain clouds beyond the mountains, that we’re all just like my children right now. Whether you are celebrating the victory of our new president-elect or mourning, it doesn’t really matter. We have convinced ourselves that this election means everything for our country. We have bought into President Trump’s line that this is the most important election of our lives. But this is not true. We are distracted by disaster. If your disaster has been the last four years, that is a distraction. If your disaster is the next four years, that is also a distraction.
Do not turn your eyes away from what is right in front of your face. God controls the rain, the wind, the heat of the summer. He ordains presidents and nations, and nothing happens outside of his plan. Not only is he sovereign and will bring about judgement for all of our disastrous sin in the end of time, he will intervene now. He will discipline and show mercy even now. He is constantly sending down rainbows and blessings as a reminder of his faithfulness to keep his promises, but you will never even know they’re there unless you look away from the disaster surrounding you.