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