Standing in the rain at a rest stop...

Yesterday it started raining. It turned into a full-out storm. The potholes in the road were horrendous. There were ominous signs everywhere. I kept trying to drive through - knowing it was nice and sunny not too far ahead. Finally, I had to give in. The bumpy, wet road was just too much. I pulled into a rest stop. I was weary. I stood there for a few minutes, storms raging all around, soaked from head to toe, looking up. My heart was heavy, but my spirit was trusting and still. Before long, a friend showed up. He walked over and stood beside me, covering me with an umbrella of prayer. Another friend walked over. She wrapped a blanket of encouragement around me to try to dry me off a bit. Another friend walked over, stood with us in that little huddle and began singing a song. The four of us stayed there for a bit, resting, singing, drying off, and just drawing strength from one another and Him. A break appeared in the clouds and we moved together back onto the road. I realized in that moment that none of the three friends of mine knew each other. Their only common bonds were myself... and Jesus. It didn't matter. They worked perfectly together to make the necessary repairs and get me back out on the road. As we began moving forward, I marveled once again at how incredibly beautiful the body of Christ is when it moves as One. I said a prayer of thanks to the Father for allowing these great friends to journey with me on this road, stand in rest stops with me in the rain, and encourage me along the way to the finish line. It's a long, hard road, but we're going to cross that finish line together. He promises.