Rockfest Day 6 - Waterproof

Golf is an interesting sport. It is known as a gentleman’s game. Invented in Scotland, it is to be played in all kinds of weather. All kinds of bad weather. If you ever watch it on TV – or nap in front of it on TV – then you know the only time the golfers stop playing is because of lightening, flooding or darkness. But mere rain, golfers laugh at mere rain.

This past weekend a big international tournament was held in Wales, England between the United States and Europe – The Ryder Cup. Being it was October in Wales it rained a lot. Not to worry. The players donned their rain-suits and off down the course they went. Problem for the US players was that their official team rain-suits – complete with their names on the back – let the rain in. The suits did not keep the rain out. The players got soaked until new rain gear from the fan souvenir shop was purchased for them. While wearing their new gear the players were kept warm and dry, and now they blended in with the crowd.

All of this was really quite the news story. The official rain-suit provider was embarrassed and made to defend their non-waterproof waterproof clothes. Reporters asked questions about whether or not the players could concentrate properly while wet. Whose silly idea was it to put names on the jackets? Would this hurt the US’ chances of retaining the Ryder Cup? It seems a little bit of rain was having a really big effect on golf for a moment. The tournament was in a fluster.

Ever watch a bird in the rain? During a recent big rain storm I had a chance to watch a bunch of birds outside my office window. Some birds were sitting peacefully on the wire. Some birds were on the ground eating and searching for food. Some birds were in the trees preening and grooming their feathers. Some birds were flying around. All of them were getting soaked. None of them seemed to care.

In other words, the birds were being birds. No fluster. No furry. No scrambling for cover. What is it the birds know that we humans don’t seem to about rain?

Perhaps birds understand that rain is a fact of life. In life we are all going to get wet from time to time. The trick is to deal with the rain like the birds and let the water just roll off our backs as we go about our day. We can’t let the rain get us all flustered and get us off our game.

Birds of course have a built in resource that we humans do not – they are waterproof. Birds have an oil gland at the base of their tails from which they spread the waterproof oil protecting them. It is helpful during times of rain be waterproof. Like the birds, we have a waterproof Resource we can reach for to protect us during our storms.

Our Resource is right there with us sitting on the wire, with us at the feeder, with us in the tree and with us as we fly around. He shelters us from the storms in our lives and strengthens us in our distress and provides shade from the heat. (Is. 25:4). We will get wet when it rains but our Rain Gear will never fail and never let us get so soaked we are taken out of the game.

With God by our side and by trusting in Him we are just as waterproof as the birds that fill the sky. There is no storm life can dish out that we will not get through. Our job is to make sure we’re using the right rain gear.

Just ask the Ryder Cup team.

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