God's Rainbow

God placed a symbol of hope directly in front of me today. I was not expecting one but there it was in all its glory, sitting upon the desk in my classroom.

One of my teens, an incredibly sweet girl who I first met when she was a freshman student of mine, left on my desk a two page letter that she said she was "led to write". It was a beautiful note of appreciation for my dedication, positive influence, and my intentions. She acknowledged my hard work and my attentiveness to all students. And then her selfless letter went straight to the heart of the matter at hand; it reminded me of God's rainbow.

"You wish the best for everyone and want them to take the high road, but some don't listen and follow a hard path. You said yourself, "I'm not Superwoman!". You can only do so much and then you have to let go and trust God will place someone else to handle the rest..."

She took time to tell me how I had personally influenced her through my "teaching and model". She gave me credit for helping her with her skills but spoke more passionately of how I had shaped her to be a better person. She continued her letter writing, "It's not about the work, it is about the challenges that you place in front of me. Life is about challenges because if God made life easy, do you know how boring it would be?"

A girl of great faith, she concluded her letter by reminding me of Jesus and his disciples. She told me I am doing my "absolute best" to follow Jesus' example and she encouraged me to "keep up the good work". She asked me to "consider the peoples' lives (I am) changing and the challenges (I am) giving myself to become a better person. "Ask God to give you strength for each day...you will always be in my heart and prayers".

I finished this angel's letter in tears. I read recently that Maya Angelou, who has spoken at several commencement events, has told students many times: “I call you rainbows in the clouds from a story in Genesis when it rained on the land so long the people thought it would never end, and God placed a rainbow in the sky to make it ease and give the people hope. This is what you are to your society”. She also said, “God puts rainbows in the clouds so that each of us—in the dreariest and most dreaded moments—can see a possibility of hope”.

Yes, God placed a symbol of hope directly in front of me today. I was not expecting one but there it was in all its glory, sitting upon the desk in my classroom. Thank you for sending me the most amazing rainbow today Lord. Thank you for working yet another miracle. Thank you for sending me a beautiful rainbow named Bethany.