Monday, June 29, 2009

God's Umbrella

“He will provide a canopy of cloud during the day and smoke and flaming fire at night, covering the glorious land. It will be a shelter from daytime heat and a hiding place from storms and rain.” Isaiah 4:5b,6

Rolling over in bed, I looked towards the window. The sun wasn’t shining. No bright stream of light cascaded across the room. My mood matched the weather. Dull. Cool. It would be another disappointing day.

Lord, why do you keep sending cloud covering to my soul?

My heart is overcast. I can’t see through this fog. Visibility is poor. Where’s the Son?

My dear precious child, the cloud that is cradling you is a canopy of protection. I know you can’t see My hand right now and don’t understand My ways, but beyond what you can see I am holding back storms. A thunderous battle is being fought and this umbrella is hiding you in the shelter of My embrace. Danger is being deferred, deflected and denied.

Have you ever thought of a cloud as a provision of safety? Have you ever thanked the Lord, for things unaware, that He has kept from touching you on this journey? In His love and wisdom the Lord is preventing us from seeing and experiencing unknown trials. Above the clouds, things too great, that would break a bruised reed, are being held in His hands. Sun that would dry up, burn and scorch is being filtered through His grace.

Today let’s thank Him for this loving safeguard and rest and wait under the cloud of God.



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12 comments:

Sharon Sloan said...

Hi, Joy! So excited for you and thankful to the Lord (and Wendy) for blessing you with this privilege! How very good our God is!

What you wrote is beautiful. It's a cloudy morning here in Pennsylvania, so I will think about this more. God protects us in ways we can't even imagine I think. Only when we see Him will we know.

This scripture is beautiful...and I will look at clouds differntly now! I am sure I have read this passage many, many times...thank you for giving me a fresh look!!!

May He fill you with Himself today!

Lori said...

Thank you dear Joy for your words this morning! I'm going to relish in His loving hiding place that only He can provide!

Isaiah 2:5 – “Come, descendants of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the LORD!”

This verse popped out to me this morning as it reminded me about a story given in church yesterday. Being in the “Light vs. Dark” was the topic. As the speaker was talking, the lights went out and it became completely void of any light. He kept talking and shortly after - I noticed my eyes acclimating to the darkness; right at this time, he made the very same comment. He said that once we are in the darkness, we just get accustomed to being in this environment. Things begin to be concealed. We are blinded. We get confused about what is right. There is a lack of clarity. Before we know it, we are living in darkness, and our idols become our gods. But once the light is turned on everything is exposed. The light is God’s Word! I can see more clearly now that when we, daily are not in God’s Word, how easy it is to adjust to our environment. When we are in church, a Bible Study, or amongst our Christian blog friends it remains easy to talk about Christ. But, what about when we are in a room full of non-Christians, OUCH! The more I read God’s Word, the more I walk with God, the more His Word becomes alive and active in me, the more I let my light shine. But, quite honestly, dear girlfriends, I’ve got a long way to go!

“I am the light of the world.” John 8:12
He is the Giver of Life. John 1:3-9
He is the “pillar of fire” providing the light that guides through the wilderness!

Oh Lord, Help me to commit to letting my light shine, no matter where I am, no matter what the cost. Allow my words to encourage, help me not to be afraid to share You, and help my tone to be pleasing to your ears. I want you to be apart of everything I do. Amen.

Have a great Monday dear friends!
Lori - AZ

Lori said...

PS okay, Diane...I had to google Dobro guitar! I can just see you doing this, while Jesus is smilin', along with all of the angels too! Oh, our God is so good, to know what we need! PTL sister! Thanks for sharing some Glory! Lori - AZ

Tracie said...

Beautiful. I usually get gloomy on rainy days, but I hope to remember this passage and your post, and look for the Son the next time I have a cloudy, even when the sun is not out.

Chanan said...

Joy,

Thank you for accepting the invitation to fill the gap for Wendy while she is on a much needed and well deserved break!!!

I enjoyed your post this morning. It is truly comforting to know that we have someone fighting for us, even when we are unaware of some of life's battles. A sense of peace and greatfulness encompassed my spirit the moment I read paragraph 5. Another act of God's mercy that I will forever be greatful for.

Be encouraged dear sisters.

Chanan
Bahamas

Anonymous said...

Good Morning Joy, I just wanted to let you know that I was blessed and enlighted by the words that was given to you from God. I too will see clouds differently.

Have a blessed day!

Highly Favored

Raylene said...

I, too, am wondering "what" lies ahead...the unseen...asking the LORD to show me and to lead, guide and direct my steps. We are in a new season..my husband has returned to the LORD, just one week ago today! My devotional by Joyce Meyer this morning was talking about God's timing...that God is not in any hurry, he takes time to do things RIGHT~HE lays a solid foundation before HE attempts to build a building. I'm wanting things to move along faster but like what you shared, Joy, there are things the LORD is doing behind the scenes, and it's best for me to wait.

Deb said...

Good Morning Joy and ladies, Just beautiful Joy! A new way to look at cloudy days inside and out.

My Highschool Sunday School Teacher from long ago was the first born again Christian I had ever met. She had love, peace and joy just oozing from her. She had planted the seeds of faith within my heart. I still praise God for her and her love for Jesus that she shared with our class. The seeds began to grow as I entered into my freshman year of college. The words she planted really started to make sense as I joined a Bible Study group and heard many testimonies of God's saving and life changing grace. It was then that I accepted Christ. My Sunday School Teacher's mother passed away and tucked in her obituary was a favorite saying of hers.

"When the Lord sends rain then rain's my choice." Wow! I love this powerful saying.

Rain can be anything that comes into our life in expected or unexpected ways. Especially those things in life we have no control over, such as the rain.

The saying helps me to let go and let God have control. Once again remembering he has the whole picture and I only have one piece at a time.

Sometimes we can get so frustrated and even angry at those times because of disillusionment and/or disppointment.

But as joy so eloquently said this morning perhaps there is an umbrella of protection in the clouds from the rain storms of this life. We just can't see it.

It's also a lesson of HOPE to keep looking for the glimpses of "Sonshine" to come through the clouds...who knows we may even see a rainbow. A sign of God's promise. He is always with us even in the cloudy storms of life.
Amen!

Love from Debbie in Illinois where the sun and Son are shining this morning.

Marilyn in Mississippi said...

Thank you LORD for your protecting hand! Holding me and guarding me from things I will never know about in this life!

Joy...had a time of prayer for you, your Dad and your family early Sunday morning. How's it going?

Marilyn

Elle Elle said...

Clouds cover our city today as well...God's arm is long and his mercy deep.

I kept coming back to this same verse today, Joy, and your insight has just brought it home...blessings, sister!

The image you give us of God filtering the scorching sun through his grace touches me so deeply...so often we forget to concentrate on what God is doing...we only see what he is not doing...

So grateful and so small in the palm of his loving hand,

Liz
AK

Chef Diane said...

Good Evening Ladies,

I love to sit on the screen deck in my rocking chair during storms. You can smell it in the distance. Then when it is upon you, the full impact is made. As it leaves you survey the damage or the blessings.
Have you ever stopped to think about the phrasing we use to describe the rain?

Scattered
Intermittent
Occasional
Isolated
Storms
Severe

Think about it, couldn't those be words to describe how we feel when we are going through trials? The most beautiful thing to me about a storm or a trial in my life, is that I know there is a blessing, new growth on the other side. How much more hope can you get than that? WOW!

I love to fly. When I look out the window and the clouds are below me instead of on top of me it makes my toes tingle. tee hee. To me it is just a tiny peek at what it might be like in heaven. (but I bet they have better snacks :-)

Great thoughts today Joy,
Hugs,
Diane

Jeannie email me a dapple1984@comcast.net

Joyful said...

Ladies, thank you so much for your encouragement and input. How I have been blessed and enriched by all your comments!!!!

Lori, the Lord has been speaking to me about "Light" and "Dark", only not that we are "in" either but that we "are". Ephesians 5:8 says, "You were darkness...now you are light." "Light" is who I am. That was an amazing new concept to me. I felt it expressed again here in what you wrote. Thank you.

Raylene, praying for you. 1 Peter 5:6 says, "Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time." Ah..."due time". Must admit it's not always "my time", but it is God's best time. Praying for you in the waiting.

Debbie, I loved that quote!!! Powerful!!! Thanks for sharing it!

Diane, I am not a 'storm girl' or a 'flier'. I had to smile at your words. Thanks for seeing the delight in two things I so often fear.

Hugs to you all,
Joy