Dealing With Drought

"The Lord will guide you always; He will satisfy your needs in a sun scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, a spring whose waters never fail." (Isaiah 58:11 NIV)

It rained a half an inch yesterday. I wasn’t home but Rob said it was glorious. Even if he hadn’t told me, I would have known it this morning. When I made my way to the porch swing, I could tell our whole lot is just a bit greener. It’s amazing what just a little moisture can produce.

Our scant amount of rain made me think about our time with the Lord and just how essential our connection to Christ truly is. Just a few minutes in His presence makes all the difference in the health of our soul. Imagine how verdant it will become if we maintain this discipline?

I’ve mentioned before how we’ve spent the summer in South Texas in drought conditions. We did not receive our typical winter or spring rains. We began the hot months already inches behind in precipitation. All summer we’ve watched system after system blow by without the sky actually opening. The winds will pick up, the lightening and thunder flash and roll, it will even smell like rain but nothing comes of it. We’ve wondered if there was an invisible dome over Weimar; deflecting any moisture while we remain parched. Meanwhile the ground cracks wide and the house shifts and we thank God for deep wells. The local meteorologists have long moved us from extreme drought conditions to exceptional drought conditions. They say we need sixteen inches to pull us out of our current drought status. Last night’s half inch was truly miraculous.

Droughts send roots deeper. There is a hidden and desperate perseverance developed in such seasons and it’s not a bad thing. As we dig, we discover that God is far larger than we first suspected.

"I pray that from His glorious, unlimited resources He will empower you with inner strength through His Spirit. Then Christ will make His home in your hearts as you trust in Him. Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high and how deep His love is." (Ephesians 3:16-18 NLT)

These dry seasons are blessings in disguise. Apart from them, how would we know how far-reaching our God actually is? How else would we discover His largesse, power and provision?

It is only amidst our searching that we will reach out and uncover still more of God. Most are content with a surface relationship: ground cover to keep things pretty. The topsoil will do. But a drought sends us digging for even more: seeking, stretching, driven deeper by our need.

"May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God." (Ephesians 3:19 NLT)

When I was a young girl growing up in northern Iowa, we experienced such a drought season. It was peculiar: the year before or after we had historic flooding and the juxtaposition has stayed with me. Anyway, the year it didn’t rain was a wonder. The Missouri River shrank back from it’s banks. My dad had always called it the Mighty Mo, but that year he harkened in the Mini Mo. It was a slow-moving stream pinned in by wide, sandy embankments on either side.

Months into the drought, the Sioux City Journal published an article about a riverboat exposed by the low water flow. They presumed the vessel to be from the mid-1800’s, which caught my dad’s attention right away. He was a Mark Twain fanatic and had to see this artifact with his own eyes. In true Klapp fashion, Dad had us out there that very afternoon, scavenging an old nail or two and taking in a history lesson. I learned then how seasons of drought can reveal treasure if we are willing to do some digging.

This principle is true in our spiritual lives, as well. It may only be in drought seasons where we gain access to the deep things of God. Think of Joseph: he regained his father and brothers because terrible famine had shook them from the folds of their familiar. Remember the widow with the oil: she only experienced dramatic divine provision when her personal resources ran dry. The disciples in the Upper Room: they received the Holy Spirit only after Jesus left the premises. The desperate seasons serve our faith, don’t they? It is in dry and dusty times where we dig a little deeper and discover depths of God that we hadn’t previously fathomed.

"Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power to work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Glory to Him in the church and Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen." (Ephesians 3:20-21 NLT)

We uncover more of God in these seasons and He gets the glory. It’s invigorating, isn’t it? If we are feeling dry, if the crust of our soul is cracked and our frame feels shifty, it’s time to start digging our wells a little deeper. We let drought seasons send our roots down further because there is still more of God to discover.

Lord, we thank You for drought seasons. It turns out they are unique opportunities to dig in and find treasure. Let us not grow weary or give up when the work is hot and hard, but keep laboring the soil of our soul until we find water. May we discover more of You in our dryness; determined to keep digging until our souls are satisfied once again and You receive all the glory. Amen.