I awakened to the sound of heavy rain pelting the skylight this morning. The refreshing rains of spring have arrived to arouse the earth from its dormancy and call forth life. Spring brings such a sense of cleansing: Dingy snow piles are washed away and winter’s cold grip is banished.

Later, I walked in the yard, simply savoring the season. The grass is greening, daffodils and crocuses are pushing through the damp ground and the fruit trees are budding. There is evidence of spring’s renewal everywhere.

As a little girl, I loved to run out into the warm rain and turn my face upward. The falling droplets would gradually saturate my hair and soak into my clothing. I would dance and splash in the puddles, reveling in the refreshing wetness of it all.

Another spring rain is fixed in my memory, from when I was a young adult. Everything that seemed solid and sure in my life had crumbled.

I was wandering and wondering. What was truth? Where was hope? Did God even exist? Unbeknownst to me, God was pursuing me, patiently waiting for me to recognize that He IS and that He was offering me the very things I longed for.

My search finally brought me to Jesus. Sometime after giving my life to him, a sudden storm moved in, drawing me to the window. Torrential rain poured down with such force that muddy water bounced upward from the quickly forming pools, flashes of lightning streaked the sky, and rolling thunder rumbled loudly. The incredible power demonstrated was gripping.

As quickly as it came, it ended. The storm moved out over the lake and a bright sun broke forth. Everything had been thoroughly washed — nothing escaped the rain’s cleansing power.

In that moment, I heard from God — not in an audible voice, but inside my heart in an unmistakable way. He reminded me that His cleansing in my life was like the storm: powerful and mighty, thoroughly washing my soul of the dusty filth that had so easily clung to my life.

We all need water to thrive and sustain life. An average adult body is 60% water. We can easily dehydrate and many times not even perceive the signs of our serious condition.

Psalm 42:2 declares, “My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.” My soul was thirsty. I was spiritually dehydrated, but didn’t recognize it. I was trying to quench my thirst with things that could not satisfy the inner longing, because it was a spiritual thirst.

Jesus said He gives us living water so we will thirst no more (John 4:13-14). He alone can truly fill our barren soul. Only His living water has the power to revive and rejuvenate our inner being.

When I surrendered to Him, it was as if a cleansing rain washed my parched soul, calling my spirit to life. I literally felt as though I had been washed of a heavy load of filth: life’s disappointments, my regrets and shame, and the guilt that had separated me from God.

My soul’s thirst was finally fully satisfied.

The Prophet Hosea calls to us, “Let us know, let us press on to know the Lord; His appearing is as sure as the dawn; He will come to us like the showers, like the spring rains that water the earth.”

Those words of truth contain promises: God’s faithfulness is as sure as the sun that rises each morning, and, as we seek to know Him through Jesus Christ, He will be as the spring rains, washing and refreshing our weary souls.