promises and covenants

in teaching the catechism to our boys, question 24 goes like this:  what is a covenant?  answer:  a covenant is a relationship that God establishes with us and guarantees by His Word.

one way we help our boys remember these truths is to make it fun so when we say the above answer, we do this funny thing with our hand like it's talking in front of our mouths when we get to "Word."  the boys crack up everytime we do it.  i've learned a lot about boy humor, but that could lead to a whole other post!

anyways, out on the soccer field tuesday night, we were reminded of God's covenant with His people.

Genesis 9:8-17
Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him:  "I now establish my covenant with you and with your descendants after you and with every living creature that was with you-- the birds, the livestock and all the wild animals, all those that came out of the ark with you-- every living creature on earth.  I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth."

And God said, "This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come:  I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.

Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life.

Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth."  So God said to Noah, "This is the sign of the covenant I have established between me and all life on the earth."