The Sun and the Rain

As I was driving to work yesterday morning, it was raining and just as the sun came up behind me, I saw the full arc of a rainbow right in front of me. It occurred to me that the only way to see a rainbow is if there is both rain and sunlight in the sky at the same time. It is only when we have both the sun and the rain that the full majesty of light is revealed in all of its colors. The sun is often used as a symbol for happiness, and rain is often used as a symbol for sadness. It is only when we have experienced both happiness and sorrow, pleasure and pain, good and evil can the full majesty of God’s great work and glory be revealed to us in all of its many hues. Grief can enrich our happiness and happiness can illuminate our grief. We were each created to experience the full spectrum of life’s experiences. God neither condemns us when He sends the rains of sadness our way, nor justifies us when He sends the sunshine of gladness. “For he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.” (Matthew 5:45). We may at times dread difficult experiences darkening our good mood, and we may sometimes feel guilty when the occasional ray of sunshine brightens us in the midst of a tragedy where we feel we have no right to feel anything but terrible, but it is only when the sun and the rain are together that we can see the rainbow.