In the clouds

Have you ever been in a time of pain...a moment of 'why me God?' and just wished you knew when the end of your tribulations would be?  You think of all the things you'll do when you are out of the storm.  Sometimes you decide you'll handle life differently. "As soon as I'm better", "When this is all over", "When I get through this".

Each morning I start my day with a devotional by Oswald Chambers.

'My Utmost for His Highest'

Most Daily Devotionals have a warm and fuzzy type of feel to them.  When I first picked up this one to read, I was met by a different kind of feeling.

Challenged.

This Devotional spoke to me in a different way than any other.  I was convicted.  Each days words asked me to take a good hard look at myself. 

I don't know about you....but that can be difficult!  In order to grow we have to break down

the parts of us that weren't working in the first place.  The misconceptions, the denials, the un-truths about 

what we think God expects of us.

This mornings devotional was about clouds.  Here we go with the storm analogy again.  Stay with me...it will make sense in a minute.  "The clouds are a sign that HE is there.  "If there were no clouds we should have no faith".  "It is by those clouds that the spirit of God is teaching us how to walk by faith"

In other words, instead of saying "As soon as I'm better, "When this is all over" or "when I get through this".....we need to find God in the moment.  Then and there.  Oswald goes on to say.."Through every cloud he brings, he wants us to unlearn something" "His purpose in the cloud is to simplify our belief, until our relationship with him is exactly that of a child."

Total trust.

Convicted.

In other words...when those moments of our lives come when we are in the middle of the storm trying desperately to get out, we should instead be simply looking to God with the trust of a child.

Challenged.

I don't know about you, but I'm a "I'll fix it" kind of person.  If I'm in the midst of a situation my first reaction is "What do I need to do to get out of this"

Today's devotional was a reminder to me that, it's not the end of the storm that defines our relationship with Christ.  It's not all the things we will do when you 'come through' the storm.  It's about what we do in the middle of the storm.  More specifically it's about who we call upon in those moments of fear and want. 

Revelations 1:7

“Look, he is coming with the clouds,”
    and “every eye will see him,
even those who pierced him”; 
    and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.”
So shall it be! Amen

Here's to keeping our eyes on the Lord in times of trouble.  Trusting and knowing in faith that HE will be with us and bring us through.

Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’Isaiah 41:10

May your day bring sunshine...but should it bring clouds...may you see HIM in them.

Patti

http://www.aholyexperience.com/