Rain Will Make The Flowers Grow

So, last night after my kids were in bed, I was flipping through the channels, and stumbled upon a real treat!  The local PBS station was showing the 25th anniversary concert of the musical Les Miserables.  That is one of my all time favorites!  I read the book my senior year of high school and loved it!  I've been to see the play twice, and I've listened to the music over and over so many times that I can't even count them.  I sing the songs in the shower and imagine that I'm on stage in London belting them out to the crowd.  (:  Anyway, my husband is out of town on business this week, so I sat on the couch for three hours and watched and cried and cried and cried.  For those of you who may be unfamiliar with the story...well, it's too complicated to go into right now...but suffice it to say that in the most basic terms it is a story of love and hope and redemption.  It's amazing!  I could write a whole year's worth of blogs on it, but for now, I'll hold it to one.

There's a song that Eponine and Marius sing together, and it hit me so hard last night as I was thinking about all the trials we go through in this life.  Whether they are infertility, sickness, the death of a loved one, unfulfilled dreams, loneliness, the loss of a job, or even the day-to-day events in life that drag us down and try to make us less than we are meant to be.  But, because of Jesus Christ and the love that He has for each one of us (Yes, He really does love you, even if you are angry or feel betrayed at the turn your life has taken.  I guess you'll have to trust me on that one until you can find it out for yourself).  So, because of that love, no matter what we face in life, He can keep us close and show us the safety and peace that reside in the eye of the storm, and take the rain and use it to make our own personal flowers grow. 

There is more love and beauty and peace in my life now than I ever would have imagined.  Don't get me wrong, I still have hard times and bad days and difficult things to overcome, but when I finally turned my insecurities and heartaches over to the Savior, the flowers began to bloom.  I can feel peace.  I know that He is watching over me.  And He will make my life beautiful, in His own way and time.  It's like Eponine says, "You will keep me safe.  And you will keep me close.  And rain will make the flowers grow."