Pic of the Month: October ’09

Clouds of Morning

 Clouds of Morning 

It was an opportunity not to be missed! During the IBLP Staff Retreat, a young man flew up to the Northwoods with a little four-seater aircraft to spend the weekend with the team. When it was announced that he was more than willing to give rides free of charge on the next day, I decidedly chose the early morning slot. It was more than worth the loss of sleep to rise at daybreak to capture the dawn from the sky.

Everything went as planned, that Monday morning, except for one thing: it was cloudy. This meant no dramatic light, no fiery hues, no magical vibrancy! But because we cannot control the weather, it does no good to become anxious about such a misfortune. The only godly response is gratefulness: expressing content for what I have instead of on what I expect to be given.

But sometimes, God will give beyond our expectations, skillfully using methods we least expect. After waiting for a hopeful half hour, this misfortune translated into quite the fortunate happenstance. The clouds broke up into an prodigious assortments of expansive patterns and transformed the muddled canvas into a plethora of color.

It was the clouds that transformed the morning.

6 Comments

  1. Jamie Parfitt October 1, 2009 at 4:53 pm #

    The clouds are the first thing I saw, but looking again gave me the treat of seeing the beautiful green valley below. It seems so peaceful segregated from the rest of the world by the thick stands of trees. Don’t you just want to go there and build a farm or something?

  2. Mom October 2, 2009 at 9:01 am #

    Thank you for this encouragement to not murmur or complain but just wait, with anticipation, and see what God has waiting for you in the situation.

  3. Matthew October 5, 2009 at 4:33 pm #

    Wow – what a glorious picture. Your testimony is motivating James.

  4. Donald October 8, 2009 at 1:37 pm #

    We’ve been observing the “clouds of morning” too! This morning David and I noticed the rosy whisps upon returning from taking up the deer corn. On other days the five of us can watch them sailing out the clerestory windows in the living room as we practice our quintet right after breakfast. Clouds of morning are one thing that can be appreciated by any early-riser in the world! You’re right Matthew–Glorious!

  5. Michael October 24, 2009 at 2:51 pm #

    That’s one really nice photo. I’m so glad you’ve developed the skill to be able to capture things like that for other people to enjoy too. Keep it up.

  6. Jennifer December 10, 2009 at 9:10 pm #

    I just wanted to say that you took a beautiful picture. When I seen it, peace filled my heart, tears came to my eyes, and I was given a reminder to give thanks for the situation, no matter how it may seem at the time. You waited and then God blessed you with a beautiful photograph. May God bless you!

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