In the past few weeks, I’ve received some emotional prayer requests from two families that likely feel like the dark clouds have rolled over their homes. Sometimes, it feels as though our prayer requests are filled with details that seem to crush us…crush our hearts, crush our spirits & crush our outlook on life. It’s not always easy to see where God is working during our feeling of being crushed. The psalmist wrote, “He….guides them by the skillfulness of his hands.” (Psalm 78:72)
The blackened clouds do come. And they will continue to come. They become a part of our life, but through God’s grace, we don’t have to be discouraged by the presence of the dark clouds. Just as physical clouds protect us from the bright sun or provide us with much-needed rain, the spiritual clouds provided by God protect us from things only God knows and help us see the faithfulness of the Lord. We see this in the example of the children of Israel being led into the Promised Land. As they travel through the wilderness the Bible tells us, “The Lord went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud to lead them the way.” (Exodus 13:21)
If you are feeling the despair and depression of clouds over your life, just know that God can turn those clouds into goodness.
Sin may still hang over us, much like a cloud, but Christ has provided a brighter day with the forgiveness of those sins.
Sickness and death may hang over our loved ones, but God provides a way to have eternal life.
Depression and mental health issues can hang over our households, but the Lord provides a glimpse at the heavenly happiness promised to each of us.
The dark clouds of daily living can overtake us. But the provision of our faithful and gracious God allows us to know that in our moments of darkness, there is hope that brighter days will be coming. No matter the prayer request, God is already skillfully guiding the situation with His very own hands.
We just have to have faith. And patience.
~Emily
Iron Porch 