Noah - Are We Done Yet?

Genesis 7:8-12 Pairs of clean and unclean animals, of birds and of all creatures that move along the ground, male and female, came to Noah and entered the ark, as God had commanded Noah. And after the seven days the floodwaters came on the earth. In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, on the seventeenth day of the second month—on that day all the springs of the great deep burst forth, and the floodgates of the heavens were opened. And rain fell on the earth forty days and forty nights.

So I went to the movies and saw the new film that's out "Fireproof" with Kirk Cameron- as if that alone weren't enough to make me go see it. My husband and I went and took the kids along too. If you haven't read the previews, it's about a married couple who are struggling. The husband takes on the task of "The Love Dare". This is something that requires 40 days of different ways to show love to your spouse. It was a great movie and we really enjoyed it, but the reason I'm relating that movie to this passage of scripture is because of that time frame = 40.

The number 40 is mentioned in the Bible several times and has a lot of significance. A 40-something time period, whether days, months, or years is ALWAYS a period of testing, trial, probation, or chastisement and ends with a period of restoration, revival or renewal.
Just like in the movie, the husband struggled during those 40 days. While the rain fell on Noah, this was a time of trial and testing for the entire family.

Now, the animals had all come to the ark, just as God had promised. Noah just had to give them their room key and usher them along to get unpacked. After which time, the water just poured. Have you ever driven into a rainstorm? You see the dark clouds ahead, you know it's about to rain and you see it coming but it always seems to hit your car harder than you expected it. Noah knew the water was coming, he'd been preparing for it, but when the time came and the rain started to pour - I wonder if he began to worry. . .

Noah had been through many things in all his years, but nothing could possibly compare to this period that he was about to go through. We must realize that when God sees the trials and testing coming our way, He, in all His graciousness, has an awesome plan of restoration and renewal in store for us. So when it feels like you're ready to cave in on day, hour, year 39, just remember that God has something wonderful awaiting us.