God at 35,000 feet

The older I get, the more I dislike cloudy weather. I can handle a day or two but after about three continuous days of cloudiness I start to get depressed. I know this sounds silly (and I would never say this on a theology exam) but I think that the idea of not being able to see the sun because the clouds hide it from me starts to become of a picture of my relationship with God. The longer it stays cloudy, the easier it is for me to feel distant from God, as if He is hiding behind the clouds. I know intellectually that He is still present in my life, but emotionally it starts to feel as if He has gone into hiding.

Last night (or sometime yesterday – my internal clock is a little wonky) as we cruised at 35,000 feet over the Atlantic, I saw something that gave me hope. The moon was half full and was shining brightly on the tops of the clouds below us. Not normally being on that side of the cloud cover, I was able to see something with my eyes that I usually have to take on faith – the moon was still there, despite the clouds. I guess it reminded me that on any given day, clouds or no, the sun (or moon) is still there. Just because I can’t see it doesn’t mean that it is gone.

And the same is true with the Lord. Even when I don’t experience Him in a way that is as personal or meaningful to me as I would like, it doesn’t mean that He has abandoned me – He is still there. And I guess because I was able to see the moon when I normally wouldn’t have been able to, I have a little more peace about the fact that God is near even when He doesn’t feel like it. I am really grateful that He speaks to us through His creation.