1 Corinthians 13:12-13 – We don't yet see things clearly. We're squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won't be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We'll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us! But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love. (MSG)

One spring, I determined that I would be outside every morning as the sun came up. So, every evening before I went to bed, I would check on the very minute that the sun was due to come up. If it said 6:23 a.m., I was out there, not at 6:22 or 6:24 but at 6:23!

The first morning, I went out and positioned my chair in the right place so that I could see it peek over the horizon. The morning was perfect, crisp enough that I threw a blanket around my shoulders. The birds were singing, and I found myself rejoicing in the beauty all around me. The problem was that I couldn't see the sun until later because of the trees, houses, and barns that were in the way. On other days, I found that sometimes there were clouds that blocked the sun altogether. What's a girl to do now?

So, was I to believe that because I didn't see the sun in the place that I was looking, it wasn't there? Because I didn't see it until later, did it not rise on time? Could it be that on those days when I didn't see it at all, it was gone forever?

Many times, I look for God in much the same way. I position myself for just how God is going to react — or how I have instructed Him to act — only to find that in His wisdom, He did something different, perhaps even something that I didn't completely understand. Or maybe, though I thought myself to be in the right place spiritually, I wasn't. Was there unforgiveness that stood in the way?

Clouds! I know about clouds that block me from seeing God. Maybe, like me, you have depression that seems to cloud your view at times, or maybe things have been bad in your life for so long that a thick black cloud envelopes you until hope is just a memory. Sometimes, my view is blocked by very practical things like lack of sleep, being too busy to pray, or illness.

Did you ever think that God had forgotten all about what you prayed for, only later to find that He was there all the time, and the results came right on time?

In the meantime, that's where trust comes in. We have a sovereign God Who, in His love for us, does what He knows is best for us. It's up to us to learn how to believe in His love and trust in Him!

Prayer: Lord, help us to learn to trust You! Amen.