In 1965 The Rolling Stones released a song called, (I can’t get no) satisfaction; it was their first number one hit.   There is something about that song that echo’s true and strikes a chord in our hearts; because we all find it difficult to be satisfied.  We all want sunny days and clear nights and we gripe and complain when it rains on our parade.   We make our plans and then we grumble and protest if things do not go our way.  We want sunshine all the time.

          Think for a moment what would happen if every day was filled with sunshine; no clouds, just clear skies and sunny days.  How long would it take for the endless sunshine to create a desert in our lives?  What if we always got what we wanted in life, what if everything came easy and nothing required sacrifice or hard work?  Soon our lives would be as dry and barren as this photo of Alabama dirt when the rains are withheld.

          The truth is we need the rain.  We need the unexpected and the difficult, because without these life would soon lose its sense of adventure.  If we never knew a difficulty, there would be no triumphs in our lives.  It is in this whole process of meeting and solving problems that life has meaning.  It is the strong winds of a storm that cause the roots of a tree to go deep and become strong.  The difficulties of life are intended to make us better, not bitter. 

          The real question is what we are going to do when it rains on our plans.  What are we going to do when life does not go the way we want?  First, realize that often it is the rain that brings new life and change into our lives, so be thankful for the rain.  There are two ways to handle difficulties: change the situation or change yourself.  The most magnificent opportunities come into our lives disguised as problems.  Do not run or hide from the difficulties you face today, just recognize that every cloud has a silver lining and there is nothing so bad that good may not come of it.  Our job is to look for the good and be satisfied no matter the weather.

Something to think about:

• Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces up, and snow is exhilarating. There is no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather.

• Contentment and satisfaction is not the fulfillment of what you want, but the realization of how much you already have.

• Undertake something that is difficult; it will do you good. Unless you try to do something beyond what you have already mastered, you will never grow.

• Things which come to us easily have no significance. Satisfaction comes when we do something which is difficult; when there is sacrifice involved.

• It takes both the rain and the sunshine to make a rainbow.

• It is not raining rain to me,
  It’s raining daffodils;
  In every dimpled drop I see
  Wild flowers on distant hills.

Thankful for the rain
Rickey Moore