Faith

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Raindrop's Quest

Another storm, another chance, she thought. All the other raindrops had been excitedly talking about the Man for weeks now, and a lucky few had even seen Him as they fell.

"He's a prophet!" some gurgled.

"He's a miracle worker!" others babbled.

The oceans foamingly insisted He was the Messiah, the long-awaited Savior.

She had been wondering if she would ever get the opportunity to observe Him for herself. In all her many years of falling as rain, or rising as condensation, or during the difficult waiting times of being suspended in a cloud, she had learned that the waters of the earth tended to gossip quite a lot, and couldn't be relied upon to get the information right.

Her senses told her that it was crucial to find out the truth about this Man, because His very presence on earth was changing everything. She had even heard that He had changed some water, a collection of drops in stone jars, into another substance, but not ice or steam: impossible! Or was it?

Maybe this storm would finally provide her chance. He was near, with His friends, and they were crossing the lake in a few boats. She knew that storms here organized quickly, and reached their full fury with almost no warning. And the thunder and lightning! Their tempestuous relationship always amused her--his grumbling was always low and patient near the start of the argument, then kept rising to huge, deafening roars at her quick, flashing retorts.

Raindrop knew that the wind would be particularly lashing tonight, and feared the Man and His friends would be taking cover, ruining her opportunity. She needed to see Him! She longed to pass as close to Him as she could, to understand all the talk. If He was God's Son, she wanted to become a part of Him, or at least to absorb something from Him into herself, somehow. Would the wind drive her too far away? Would the boats even survive the squall?

Her preoccupation almost caused her to miss her turn! While other drops dozed in the clouds, or the young ones cowered with confusion, she seized her opening, and dove from the cloud. Oh, the wind! The waves are so high! Those boats are in trouble, becoming swamped already. She could see, even from her high vantage point, that some of the men were frantically bailing, or rowing, or struggling with the sails, but others were moving from her sight, disappearing below the deck.

She heard them say, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?" and thought, "He's below! I knew it!" She struggled with her bitter disappointment, but had no choice; she was in the grip of gravity. She had to continue her fall, her mission incomplete.

Activity slightly changed on the boat, and some of the men emerged from below...there He is! She was close enough to hear Him ask His disciples about their faith and their fear, and realized that He, too, was not only keenly disappointed, but hurt. He was thinking, "How could they ask if I cared about them? I will suffer unimaginably for them someday, someday soon." He wanted them to understand more about His identity than they seemed ready to grasp, and He wondered if a demonstration might communicate to them even more clearly...

"Peace! Be still!" Thunder and Lightning stopped their latest "discussion" so abruptly it was almost comical, and the wind dropped so suddenly it actually fell on its back, an event that had never happened before, and has never happened since.

Raindrop knew the voice. It was the same as the voice they all obeyed, always. She did her best to aim toward Him, drawn powerfully toward her Messiah, the King of Kings. She knew the truth about Him now, simply but surely.

The final gust of wind had changed her trajectory, and she saw with bursting happiness that she was headed directly for the Master. Ten feet above Him, six feet now...and splash! She came into contact with the Almighty, His forehead, and slid down His temple. She had never known such joy, had never encountered the Divine before. As she moved over His cheekbone, she felt herself change, almost like when she merged into the ocean.

She had become salty by mingling with a tear, shed by this Man who was also God.

She was forever changed.

Brenda Kern
September 12, 2004

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