Often we associate clouds with despair and depression. We say, “Our vision is clouded,”
or “Our minds were clouded,” meaning we are not seeing clearly or thinking soberly. Clouds
bring rain, and can impede our view of the bright sun. You hear people say, “It’s a beautiful
sunny day”! Rarely, if ever, do we say, “What a beautiful cloudy day”! Clouds often physically
and psychologically bring darkness and drear.
I believe we should stop trying to see God through the clouds, but rather look for God in
the clouds! Biblically speaking, clouds were symbolic of God’s presence, just like the rainbow
was symbolic of His covenant with mankind. People could not “see God and live” (Exodus
33:20), but often people knew God was in their midst with the presence of clouds (Exodus
13:21-22, Leviticus 16:2, Numbers 16:42, 1 Kings 8:10-12).
Cartoons usually portray a character having a bad day by a cloud hovering over their
head and it raining everywhere they go. An intense or scary movie scene generally occurs during
a storm. It seems, clouds are often the sorrow and sufferings, within our personal lives. Yet it is
through these very clouds that God tries to teach us how to walk by faith. If there were never any
clouds in our lives, we would have no faith (James 1:2-4). God cannot come near us without
clouds.
On the Mount of Transfiguration, Peter, James, and John were with Jesus when Elijah
and Moses appeared. While Jesus was talking to Elijah and Moses, the disciples were afraid. The
cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is My dearly loved Son. Listen
to Him.” (Mark 9:7-8). Suddenly, when they looked around, Moses and Elijah were gone, and
saw only Jesus with them.
Clouds should not hinder us from seeing God. Clouds should represent God’s presence in
our greatest time of need.
Look for God in the clouds!

~Justin Barnes, Azalea City church of Christ, Semmes, Al