A friend of mine was given the opportunity to plant a church in the Pacific Northwest some years ago. During the assessment, he was asked how the weather would affect him. The Northwest can experience extended periods without sunshine. My friend explained that he was solar powered; a life without sunshine would certainly affect his personality and attitude.
Since I moved to Fort Worth, I’ve experienced a different climate. Not only is it hotter and drier, but it’s also sunnier. I can expect a rain shower once every two weeks or so, and the rest of the time it’s sunshine and blue skies. Unlike my friend, I wasn’t born solar powered. I grew up on the Gulf Coast of Alabama and Mississippi. Summers on the Coast are different than anywhere I’ve ever been. Every afternoon sometime between two and three the skies grow dark, as if God somehow turned the sun off, and the clouds open up a barrage of raindrops the size of quarters. When it rains like that, the greens are just a little bit greener. The azaleas are a little pinker. Color springs to life. It’s a wonderful sight.
Today it was cloudy in Benbrook. The temperature never rose above 95F, so the heat couldn’t cause the boiling haze in the air. The skies were a mixture of light and dark gray, offering protection from the sun and clarity to see the world as it really is. Days like today give me strength.
It looks like it’s going to rain this evening. What a glorious day.
