²² The Lord said to Moses, ²³ “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them:

²⁴ “‘“The Lord bless you
and keep you;
²⁵ the Lord make his face shine on you
and be gracious to you;
²⁶ the Lord turn his face toward you
and give you peace.”’

²⁷ “So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.” Numbers 6:22-27

We’re caught in another rainy pattern this week, aren’t we?  It seems like the rain will never stop.  We’ve had over 2 inches in the past two days and more tomorrow. Last night, thunderstorms rolled through, and Chloe (our little beagle) whined persistently at our bedroom door for a full half hour until I let her in.  She shot under the bed like a rabbit finding her hole. The ground is now fully saturated and it’s beginning to flood low lying areas.  This morning on the way to the church, the Conestoga Creek looked like class 3 rapids as it churned and roiled under the bridge on Rt 625. Looking at the radar map, it looks like the whole northeast is getting it.  I hope things clear up in time for the eclipse on Monday!

I always find that continuous rain or cloudy weather affects my mood and energy level.  For me there’s just a huge difference between waking up in the morning with bright sunlight streaming through my bedroom window or waking up to a gloomy overcast dusk. No transfer to Seattle for me. I need the sun.

Of course, we all know the sun really never stops shining. It’s still there; the clouds are simply blocking our view.  If you get above the clouds, it’s still quite sunny. I’ve had this experience many times on an airplane.  Perhaps you have, too. You take off on a miserable, overcast, rainy day and as you ascend, the plane passes through thick cloud cover.  Visibility drops to zero as everything is enveloped in a thick gray soup. And then, suddenly the plane bursts into the dazzling full sun of a cloudless day.  It takes your eyes a moment to readjust to this world above the clouds where the sky is always blue, and the sun is always shining.

Then upon descent, the opposite happens.  You leave the fairy tale world of unfettered sunlight and wispy clouds back down into the depressing gloom of wall-to-wall cloud cover and skin-soaking rain.   Blah!

What a great metaphor of our perception of God and relationship with Him.  God’s presence, love and favor towards his children is like the sun, constant and ever shining- faithful throughout all generations. He never flags, never fails, never wavers. The theological term for this is immutable.  God never changes.

Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

James 1:17 “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”

Psalm 102:27 “But you remain the same, and your years will never end.”

However, our perception of God varies dramatically, day by day and season by season.  The clouds of  circumstances, sin, and our own human frailty often conspire to obscure his unchanging faithfulness.  Because we are up and down, our experience of God goes up and down. And we may even come to think that his favor towards us goes up and down, when in fact, it is rock solid and unchanging, ever shining like the sun.

I think that’s one of the reasons why God gave Moses this blessing.

The Lord blesses you
and keep you;
²⁵ the Lord make his face shine on you
and be gracious to you;
²⁶ the Lord turn his face toward you
and give you peace.”’

We call it the “Aaronic” or “Priestly” Blessing because the priests would bless the people of Israel with these words after religious ceremonies at the temple.  But the truth is, it should be called “God’s Blessing.” It wasn’t made up by Aaron as a pious hope, prayer, or aspiration. It was given by God as a gift to his people because it includes eternal truths that He wants us to remember, namely, that God is never far away, and his face is always towards us. We are, in fact, always in his favor. And if that was true in the old covenant, how much more in the new covenant where we have been “blessed… in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” (Ephesians 1:3)?

So maybe the rain has you down this week.  Perhaps you’re discouraged by your own failings and not feeling particularly loveable or blessed today.  Well, just like the sun is still up there, shining in full force, God’s face and favor is still upon you and you are the recipient of his amazing grace and peace. Let’s live in the light of truth.

I  hope that this truth encourages you as we journey through a dreary week.