Bowed

Yesterday as Walker and I headed around our familiar route for the first time in too many days, we saw something unexpected, but delightful. Despite feeling a bit careworn from the trials of the past year, each of us was greeted by the symbol of a promise.

8Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying,
9"Now behold, I Myself do establish My covenant with you, and with your descendants after you;
10and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you; of all that comes out of the ark, even every beast of the earth.
11"I establish My covenant with you; and all flesh shall never again be cut off by the water of the flood, neither shall there again be a flood to destroy the earth."
12God said, "This is the sign of the covenant which I am making between Me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all successive generations;
13I set My bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth.
14"It shall come about, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow will be seen in the cloud,
15and I will remember My covenant, which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and never again shall the water become a flood to destroy all flesh.
16"When the bow is in the cloud, then I will look upon it, to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth."
17And God said to Noah, "This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth."