Will I Praise God For The Clouds?
[Prampram, Ghana] Following a highly productive week of front-line evangelistic ministry in the region around Ada, we left Saturday morning for the one and one-half hour westward journey to the town of Prampram along the Atlantic coastline of Ghana. The trip was easy enough.
Upon our arrival at the Meridian Drive Hotel we settled into our assigned rooms only to discover that the electric power was very sporadic. The lights were on, then off, then on. The most noticeable difference was in the brightness of the lights and fans. It was frustrating for us, but something at the Ghanaians deal with daily. To make matters more frustrating was the fact that no one had apparently been in this hotel in sometime, so the cement structure was baked warm and there was a familiar smell to all the place. It became clear to me that we “weren’t in Ada anymore.”
For all of last week we enjoyed stable electricity which powered our air conditioning units well. Our rooms were so cool last week that we slept in long sleeves and long pants! I guess I took it all for granted. Now this week we were aware of the change. We were quick to point out to the staff in our Prampram hotel that we needed to be assured that if the power went off we needed the generator turned on.
This situation gave me pause to realize that we often take things for granted rather than expressing gratitude. How often do all of us go through the day, when everything is going well, with no regard of the blessings of the Lord? We somehow think that everything is perfect and we just live inside of the blessings, rather than expressing our thanksgiving and gratitude to the Lord.
Our entire team was quick to but “pray” that the Lord would restore the electricity and we “thanked Him” when it returned, but I became extremely aware that we need to spend more time each day just recognizing the Lord’s presence in our lives.
We awoke Sunday morning to a cooler and cloudy day. The Lord proved to me that He did not need electricity to keep us cool. It was as if He was teaching us to trust Him in spite of our conditions! We are thankful and grateful for the grey skies and gentle breeze.
Maybe today you are facing some sporadic times. Perhaps you are going through some ups and downs in your life. Is it possible that you, like us, need to be more intentionally award that Jesus is sufficient for our situation? When the electricity is off, God is able to send in the clouds to keep you satisfied. Don’t look at the absence of sunlight as a bad thing. It may be that God is protecting you, and providing for you with the clouds. Praise His Wonderful Name for the clouds.
Roy