Send My Roots Rain (06/05/2026)

This morning, as I took my coffee cup and my hardly awake self out onto the porch to wake up, I instantly noticed a ripple in the bird bath water. It was gently raining. The hanging plant had visible water drops upon its massive leaves. And instantly I found myself thanking the LORD. He had heard my prayer. “O thou lord of life, send my roots rain.”

The line is the final line of one of my favorite poems by Gerard Manley Hopkins, “If Thou Art Indeed Just, Lord, I Contend.” It speaks of a faithful servant’s pondering about suffering in his life. But like all scriptural laments, it ends in hope – “O thou lord of life, send my roots rain.” The LORD does see us. The LORD does hear us. The LORD is just.

Our journeys of faith must be buoyed with hope and fueled with love. Our lives will not be all sunshine and roses, as they say. In fact, I know of no saints whose history would be described that way. I know for sure my Savior’s would not. But we do have hope because our LORD is with us even when we cannot see Him. And our LORD is trustworthy and loving.

When we choose “the Way,” we need to recognize that it involves hardships and struggles. As all the letters of Paul suggest, to follow in the footsteps of our LORD means to pick up our own crosses first.

But then, there will be those moments when we see and feel and know that the LORD is with us, the LORD sees us, and the LORD cares for us. He hears our prayers. He sends our roots rain.

Until tomorrow, let us all love well.