Praying for Rain for 56 Years

The first recollection I have praying for rain was when I was ten years old.  Cooper Jones was my baseball coach 56 years ago.  Before playing a game, we would gather as a team and say a small prayer.  I was not good at prayer, certainly I was not very generous or concerned about the other team.   As I recall my prayers were mostly, “please help us win” prayers.  Not in so many words, but that was my intent in my heart.

Apparently, Coach Cooper had a bigger picture view of life, and he was always made sure that we mentioned that we needed moisture and if it wasn’t too much trouble would “God bless us with the moisture we needed.”

This always seemed contrary to common sense because in my 10-year-old mind “moisture” would only cause a rain delay or cancelling the game all together which didn’t seem like a good idea.  Funny, how we want the blessings we want, and we want them when we want.

For most of my adult life, prayers for rain have been a frequent petition—at every game, every meeting, and church. I feel I’ve been patient. Surely 56 years of prayer should yield some tangible benefit beyond making me “patient and long-suffering”—qualities, my too kind and loving wife claims I hardly exemplify.

And sure, although I am not much of a scriptorian, I know the bible is full of stories of people that have had to wait decades for promised blessings.  Abraham and Sarah waited 25 years until Issac was finally born.  Anna the Prophetess spent most of her life fasting and praying, waiting to see the Messiah and was 84 years old when Jesus was finally brought to the temple.  So apparently, praying, waiting and developing those heavenly virtues of “patience and long suffering” is part of the plan if you are going to pray to God for rain.

Well, I am glad to report that my prayers have finally been answered.  The rains came.  Boy did the rains come.  My unofficial sources claim as much as seven inches of rain.  The banks of the rivers and streams over flowed.  I have beach front property now.  There is a nice little lake where my yard used to be.  We will be boating on the golf course soon.  To be sure, I am not taking credit for the recent rains.  I do hope my patience and consistent whining may have helped some because I sorta have a whole list of other things I need to pray for and my patience and long suffering were starting to wane.

I know there are many good people, that have and live their lives way more consistently with their Christian virtues than I do.  The grizzled farmer and desperate ranchers offer more sincere prayers and have lived better lives than I have, and probably more legitimately   could petition God and expect or hope for some kind of help.

I hate to confess this to my readers, but once I prayed that I would have a successful deer hunt, it was a Sunday morning.  And I knew that if I didn’t change my ways, I was destined to be roommates with the Devil when my young daughter prayed “Please help daddy get a deer so he can come to church with us.”  Ouch!

So I am beyond happy that the rains have come.  If this article ever makes it into the equivalent of the Dead Sea Scrolls in some version of history I want people to know that after many long years of prayer, my prayers have been answered.  We finally got the “moisture” we have all been asking for.  Okay, probably not because of me.  But, if I have learned anything from writing all these years, those that write history get to claim victory and virtues regardless of the facts.