Listen, O heavens, and I will speak;

hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.
Let my teaching fall like rain

and my words descend like dew,

like showers on new grass,

like abundant rain on tender plants.

Deuteronomy 32:1-2

San Antonio is a dry climate, especially compared to Houston where I grew up. And this summer has been especially dry. Twenty-five of the last 30 days have been without rain, and the remaining five days yielded only 1/4 inch of rain. In that same time frame, we've had 23 days of temperatures above 100 degrees, and the lowest high in the other days was 95 degrees. Stage 2 drought restrictions are in place, meaning our use of water for landscaping and car washing is extremely limited. Even our carefully chosen xeriscape plants (high heat tolerant and drought resistant) are struggling.

Day after day we've been starting out in the upper 70s, hitting the 100s by 2 p.m. or so, and gradually cooling back down. The kids and I have modified our schedules so any gardening or outside work or play is done early in the day, then we sit inside where the air conditioning keeps us comfortable - that is until that inevitable time of day when our aging a/c unit can no longer cool and needs a break. We turn it off and let it rest for a while before turning it back on. This is the rhythm of our summer. We also have been swimming more, although we have to wait until 4 in the afternoon so we don't get overexposed to the sun.

It is so hot that yesterday, one of my daughters burned her bare feet as she walked out to the mailbox. This is a child who rarely wears shoes and who endures the ubiquitous stickers in our yard. But her feet were no match for the hot driveway yesterday. Even though she soaked them in a mop bucket filled with water cooled by an ice block, she still had difficulty walking on them. Another daughter checked our indoor/outdoor thermometer and exclaimed, "It's 108 degrees outside and the sky is cloudy!" (Disclaimer here: The thermometer reads high by 5 or 6 degrees in the afternoon because of its placement under the cabana eaves where heat tends to intensify at that time of day. Anyway, it was certainly hot!)

When I heard "cloudy", I felt an excitement and looked up the weather radar online. My excitement grew to great heights when the radar show rain - significant rain - heading our way! We all literally jumped for joy! It was another hour or two before the rain hit, but when it did, there were thousands of happy NW San Antonians! We got about 2 inches of rain in a couple of hours and people did not seem to mind getting soaking wet. In fact, some people purposefully stood out in the rain so they could feel the refreshing rain pouring down.

As I watched the rain falling from the sky and felt it wash over me, I kept singing the Todd Agnew song - "Hallelujah, Grace like rain falls down on me." For me, living in this dry climate has caused me to think of rain as a true blessing from God. I never cease to be amazed at how God's outpouring of rain so far exceeds man's humble attempts to water the landscape. In just a few minutes, God's rain quenches the thirsty ground far more than a day's worth of man's intricate sprinkler systems.

Just as God's showers refresh the ground, so His outpouring of grace and love refresh the thirsty soul. I think sometimes we are like the people in a parched land, hoping for relief, when we don't realize that God is just waiting to refresh us with His goodness. Will we stand ready, with outstretched arms, ready for His downpour?

I will proclaim the name of the LORD.

Oh, praise the greatness of our God!
He is the Rock, his works are perfect,

and all his ways are just.

A faithful God who does no wrong,

upright and just is he.

Deuteronomy 32:3-4

Promotion Day

Her husband is respected at the city gate,

where he takes his seat among the elders of the land. Proverbs 31:23

Some would say it was 13 years in the making, but I believe it was a lifetime. In 1996, my husband began his Air Force career as a Captain, and after serving as a Major for 6 years, he was promoted on July 31, 2009 to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. There were about 70 people in the standing-room only audience as Chuck was not only congratulated but also honored - honored for his service, and, more importantly, honored for the man he is: loyal, dedicated, hard-working, productive, innovative, and caring. What a privilege it was for me to witness the praise given him and to know that it is because of God's favor bestowed on him that he is viewed so favorably by others.

The kind of character that is my husband does not develop overnight. It is shaped and molded from the time of birth, influenced by parents, peers, siblings, circumstances, teachers, and by the Holy Spirit of God. It is tried and tested, tweaked and transformed, bit by bit until we are called home to glory.

I have had the awesome privilege of watching that character develop for the past 19 years. I have the delight of living with this man who is so highly favored. I know him better than any other living person, and I love him dearly and enjoy him immensely. Is he perfect? No, but he is perfect for me.

One of the great things about Chuck is his humility. On February 16, 1991, he got down on one knee and asked,"Will you marry me and be my wife?" He had no idea how prophetic his words were as I accepted his proposal and began to change my identity from "Miss Independent" to "Mrs. Isler". I have found more joy in giving my self away and serving Chuck and our children than I ever would have found trying to please myself. Serving a humble man is a pleasure and a privilege.

In humility and love, Chuck once again bowed his knee - after being commissioned to a higher rank - so that his children could take part in pinning on his new rank. Rather than having them struggle to get to his level, he humbled himself, going down on one knee so he could get to their level and they could thereby share in his glory. Great men do that. They give up their power and position to come down to the level of those around them. Chuck learned this from the greatest man who ever lived.

Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
Philippians 2:5-8