Water Weather

It's been raining alot lately, not that I am complaining. I love rain, I love the cloud formations, I love the sound the rain makes. I love the way lightning highlights the clouds on a dark night. I love that we live out in the country with the back deck looking toward Oklahoma. The storms come from the south and west but mostly south.

anyhoo,

So last friday, after work, I called my beloved to tell her I was on the way home (as I usually do) and she tells me that with the rain that's been nonstop for a couple days now, that the runoff from the fields and the ditches has now flooded the front yard again.

I like it when that happens.

It reminds me of the wet season in Illinois where I grew up, we used to play in the flood waters for days on end. There was one stream that went through the town. Every year it would flood way out because of all the feilds that drained into it let alone all the streets. We would have so much fun. I remember all the parents and the village board would always hate it because they were afraid that someone would drown, but no one ever did... as far as I know. There were always the parents that made up the stories about snakes and huge catfish and stuff to keep us out of the water.

So anyhoo I'm driving home surrounded my memories and I think how fun that would be to play in the water again.

So I did.

I had so much fun.

There was two main sources that the water was coming from; one was the ditch by the road, and one was from the field behind the neighbors house. They both go under the drive way and across to the other side of the yard to where they join another current where there is runoff from a pond and another field. From there it goes under a bridge and into the land across the way. The current was enough to sweep charlie off his paws (at close to 60 pounds now) and start whining. Lucy didn't want to try it. But I'm finding out, puppies LOVE water.

Most all the water was moving, leaving little stagnant. But the thought occoured to me. Alot of runoff was coming from the ditch but not all. Meaning that half of what was in the ditch, continued the ditch.

Before I go on, you must know that I like having a lake in front of the house, I like it alot. So much so that after watching the water for a while I decieded to get my shovel.

As I was working I realised something profound. It's hard to stop water from going somewhere. I mean very hard. Water follows the path of least resistance, always. It doesn't really care about how hard you try to dam it up and even if you do it will find a path, unless you make one first.

It is aheck of a lot easier making a new path of least resistance then trying to bar the old one. If I want water to go this way instead of that, I make it easier for it to do that. Sometimes that even ment pulling a small rock out of the soil. Once that was done and the water found a new path, the current did most of the digging. Once most of the current was redirected I could pile rocks and mud in the old route to force more current in the new direction. More current: more water doing the digging.

And all it took was a little water in the wrong place to redirect the entire current.

I got to thinking how much that is like sin.

My current (spiritual lives) my be going in a good direction, I may have already carved out a good path to follow (by Gods grace). But what if the enemy comes? What if he moves a small rock here, or puts mud in the way there? How strong is my current? Will I keep flowing in the straight and narrow or will I get lazy and find that it is easier to follow the path of least resistance? A small rock in life might start a trickle that will erode away till what once wasn't a big deal, now is.

So I ask myself, where are the paths of least resistance in my life where is the enemy is trying to wear me away.

Today it's raining again, and I'm glad.