Michael W. Smith - Let It Rain - Open the Flood Gates of Heaven Lyrics
Lyrics
Let it rain, let it rain. Open the floodgates of Heaven Let it rain, let it rain. Open the floodgates of Heaven Let it rain, let it rain
The Lord reigns, let the earth be glad Let the distance shores rejoice Clouds and thick darkness surround him Righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne A fire goes before him and consumes his foes on every side His lightning lights up the world The earth sees and trembles The mountains melt like wax before the Lord Before the Lord of all the earth The Heavens proclaim His righteousness And all peoples will see His Glory
Open the floodgates of Heaven Let it rain, let it rain. Open the floodgates of Heaven Let it rain, let it rain
We want to see Your Glory, God! Do you want to see His Glory? Lift your voices, lift your hands!
Let it rain, let it rain.
Open the floodgates of Heaven
(Repeat)
Video
Michael W Smith - Let it Rain
Meaning & Inspiration
When Michael W. Smith invited the church to sing for the heavens to open back in 2009, he tapped into a hunger that remains just as sharp today. This song isn’t just a catchy chorus; it’s an invitation to invite the transformative power of God into our dry, dusty reality. When we cry out for the floodgates to open, we are echoing the ancient longing of the prophet Isaiah who begged God to tear the heavens open and come down. We aren’t just asking for a blessing; we are asking for a divine invasion.
The weight of the lyrics sits firmly on Psalm 97, which paints a vivid picture of a God who is both terrifyingly powerful and perfectly just. When Smith sings that righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne, he is grabbing hold of the very character of God. This isn’t a passive deity sitting on a distant cloud. This is the King of kings whose presence causes mountains to melt like wax. That line is intense, but it is biblically accurate. Hebrews 12 reminds us that our God is a consuming fire, and when we ask for the rain, we are asking for that fire to burn away the things in our lives that don’t belong in His kingdom.
When the earth sees and trembles as the lightning flashes, we are seeing a snapshot of the ultimate end-times reveal. We want that reality now. We want the righteousness of God to be so visible in our communities that the heavens themselves have no choice but to proclaim it. The repeated prayer to let it rain is a desperate posture of surrender. It says that we have nothing of value to offer unless the Spirit of God pours out upon us. Without the rain of His Spirit, our ministry is just noise, our programs are empty, and our efforts are hollow.
Asking for the floodgates to open is a risky business because it means we are ready for a deluge that we cannot control. We lose our grip on the steering wheel when we invite the God of lightning and fire into the room. If you truly want to see His glory, you have to be ready for the ground to shake. Stop trying to manage the downpour and start learning how to thrive in the middle of the storm.