Clouds

I’d just gotten done with a run the other day, and was stretching upstairs in our house, when my wife called up to me to go look out our back windows.  Being a good husband, I did what I was told!

What I saw was beautiful.  A very low-lying thin cloud was flowing past our back yard.  You could see through it for the most part, but it was indeed a cloud, and made everything a bit foggy for a while. 

Its funny, when one is flying in a plane above the clouds, you look down and they almost look like they’re a firm substance, just like the ground.  As a kid, whenever we flew, I’d imagine that I could just hop right out of the plane, and run along the clouds with no worries.  There would be that many of them at times, and they just looked so solid to me.

It strikes me that so many of the things we put our faith in are like clouds in a sense.  They seem firm and unchanging when viewed from above, but upon closer examination, one can notice the flaws and holes.  When we put our complete trust in the institutions of man, for example, without any spiritual compass to guide us, we are destined for disappointment eventually.  Sooner or later, we’ll discover that these institutions are flawed, like all of us humans are, for that matter.  They seem so rock solid at first glance, but they break apart after further scrutiny…just like clouds.

The older I’ve become, the more I’ve discovered that I need to put my faith in something more rock-solid.  God is more solid than any cloud, more solid than any man-made institution for that matter.  Certainly, we can be disappointed in God at times, just like we can be disappointed by human beings.  But, ultimately, He’s there, and we will again feel His touch, His presence. 

To be fair, I’m not of the belief that human beings aren’t capable of producing wonderful creations, or right-working institutions.  They certainly are.  But, the problem with us humans is we’re also flawed creations, imperfect, and all too often, a little bit self-centered (I speak from experience).  If we put ALL our faith in mankind, well, eventually, we’re going to find we need something more, something eternal, something unchanging.

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.

-The Minister