President’s Corner: Don’t Be Afraid of the Rainstorms

I don’t know about you, but my garden is overflowing with weeds at the moment. With a busy schedule, it can sometimes seem impossible to keep up with. Last week, I decided to try to make it fun by inviting my children to pull some weeds with me. We talked about the importance of making sure to pull the weeds out by the roots so they wouldn’t grow back. And we also talked about how weeds are easier to pull out after a big rainstorm.

Somedays, I intentionally set aside time after rain to get some weeding in, because I know it will be much easier. This made me think about how I approach the “rainstorms” in my life. If we’re being honest, I suspect the majority of us would rather avoid the storms in our life where possible. We prefer sunshine and rain-free weather. But what if we looked at it differently? What if we approached the storms in our life with the knowledge that we are being primed to weed out the things that we no longer need. 

We can often feel raw after a challenging experience, but there is also a profound sense of wisdom that comes after those moments. Sometimes it takes anger, tears, prayers or talking with friends to overcome it. But in the end, we leave those experiences transformed and ready to leave behind the things that may have been crowding the blossoms trying to bloom in our lives. If we can learn to welcome the rainstorms in our life as opportunities to grow and be transformed, we will also begin to more easily recognize the pieces of our habits that need to be discarded for our new season.

So don’t be afraid of the storms, dear friends. 

You are simply loosening up the roots in your soul that are ready to be discarded.

If we can think like this, I’m certain we will find ourselves feeling like there’s more room to bloom.