Happy Friday!

Need a 5 minute break? Keep reading…

Rainbows: Choose Your Own Adventure

When you see a rainbow, what thoughts come to your mind? Childhood memories of stormy days and muggy skies filled with a faint stream of colors? The Wizard of Oz? Rainbows have been a longtime symbol of hope in many cultures. Jews and Christians remember the rainbow sent to Noah and his zoo, as a symbol of God’s promise and a future of hope. Buddhists have an age-old belief of becoming a rainbow body, nearly reaching enlightenment. Even in Japanese mythology, the rainbow becomes a Bridge of Heaven, providing transport for humans to go and creative land out of the chaotic oceans.

Beyond its incredible history, rainbows have become a symbol of identity and visibility for groups who have been ostracized. Harvey Milk urged the artist Gilbert Baker to create the first rainbow flag, a symbol of pride for the LGBTQ+ community, and it was first waved in 1978. This year, the rainbow was drawn and painted by children and adults alike, posted in windows around the world, as a symbol of hope and solidarity in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. And, most recently, the rainbow has been put to the background of the “Black Lives Matter” logo as a symbol of protest for equity for all Black LGBTQ+ people. Even Hollywood Boulevard received a makeover on the 50th anniversary of the first Pride celebration, with rainbow letters spelling out “All Black Lives Matter.”

Through these few examples (and many others throughout our history), we see this unpredictable, God-created prism of light as such an important anchor of hope in our lives. No matter our journey or our story, the glimpse of a rainbow invites us to look up (& maybe squint our eyes), look out, and -what do we tend to do? – share this rainbow with someone around us. “Oo, there’s a double rainbow!” It’s an exciting sight, one that we cannot touch but that touches our hearts. So, in honor of the beauty that is a rainbow, choose a song to listen to today. May it bring a smile to your face and a deep sense of hope to your life.

Songs About Rainbows: Choose One!

^{12 And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: 13 I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.}

Genesis 9:12-13

1. Check-in: Where are you experiencing hope? What do you think of when you see a rainbow? (Either write down your thoughts or share with a trusted one.)
2. Action/Inaction: What are some ways you can seek to discover hope this weekend?
3. Pray with God: God, thank you for inventing rainbows. They cause us to look up, look around, and share in the wonder. Thank you for this symbol promise of your presence and your protection for better days ahead. In Your Son, Jesus’, name we pray, Amen.

I thank God for this opportunity to spend 5 minutes of your precious time with you. Go forth with hope!

~Laurel