Coming Back To God 8

INTRO: This is the final message in coming back to God. We looked in a former series at leaving God, and now we have looked at coming back to God.
In an earlier message I quoted Dr. John R. Rice who quoted B. H. Carroll of a picture in words about a time of drought. It is the picture of the heart of one who has truly known God and is in a backslidden state. B.H. Carroll describes it like this: I have witnessed a drought in Texas. The earth was iron and the heavens brass. Dust clouded the thoroughfares and choked the travelers. Watercourses ran dry, grass scorched and crackled, corn leaves twisted and wilted, stock died around the last water holes, the ground cracked in fissures, and the song of birds died out in parched throats. Men despaired. The whole earth prayed: ‘Rain, rain, rain! O Heaven, send rain!’ Suddenly a cloud rises above the horizon and floats into vision like an angel of hope. It spreads a cool shade over the burning and glowing earth. Expectation gives life to desire. The lowing herds look up. The shriveled flowers open their tiny cups. The corn leaves untwist and rustle with gladness. And just when all trusting, suffering life opens her confiding heart to the promise of relief, the cloud, the cheating cloud, like a heartless coquette, gathers her drapery about her and floats scornfully away, leaving the angry sun free to dart his fires of death into the open heart of all suffering life.