Truth That Speaks Louder Than the Rain

The rain came down in sheets and the wipers struggled to keep up.  Cars slowed, lights flashed, horns blared, and the rain kept pounding on the car and the streets.  My brain struggled to think clearly with the noises all around me.  Her soft voice came from the back seat:

"Mommy, can you make it louder?"

I turned up the volume until "Jesus, Thank You" came through the speakers with twice the power.

"No, mommy, louder.  Much, much louder."

I shrugged and cranked the volume.  The music filled the car and she sat in her carseat and belted the lyrics with as much strength as her 3-year-old vocal chords could muster -- "Once your enemy, now seated at your table..."

My eyes and energy were focused on the road in front of me, but my ears were captivated by her sweet praises.  I smiled.

I could see the rain, but I wasn't listening to it.  The steady pounding had faded into the background and the songs of truth had taken over.

Because storms can demand our attention and our ears naturally hear the its noise.  But we can choose to allow words of truth, God's words, to speak louder than the rain.  We can choose to revel in the promises of God above the blaring screams of our harsh circumstances.

God's truth can trump the screams of small children with needs that seem never-ending.
God's truth can speak louder than the laundry piles that shout condemnation.
God's truth declares that we are righteous in Christ, even when we look back a day full of failure.
God's truth says that He is worthy of praise, for He is good, even when our circumstances bring pain.

And when we choose the sing and hear truth louder than the noise outside, there is joy.

Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior.  

Habakkuk 3:18