As I passed by the hallway window the other morning, this was the sight that greeted me. I had a particular tiredness about me and was thinking about all I had to do that day. When I looked up toward the light streaming toward me I was caught off guard by what I saw. The sky above our neighbor’s house looked as if someone had painted a mural. It was the stuff story books and fantastic movies are made of; like something out of a dream. Puffy white clouds interspersed with cracks of fresh morning blues. It actually had me thinking, “Maybe it will be a good day.” As if the sight was a sign of things to come.
I’ve based the start of many a day using the weather outside or the attitudes of others as markers of how things are going to be. I’ve let the temperature of the people around me or the pressure of situations about me determine my success or outlook. But we’re mistaken if we think “reading the tea leaves” of our surroundings has anything to do with what God is up to. For Christians, the sky is inconsequential when compared to the one who made it.
The clouds outside my hallway window, looking like a painting one early morning.
“Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”” —Acts 1.6-8 NIV
The Disciples are standing with Jesus, having seen miracle upon miracle, and even witnessing the resurrection of the dead, and yet they are still missing both the point and the focus of what Jesus wanted for them. Jesus wants His disciples to be witnesses to Him and to His resurrection through the power that He will bestow upon them. The Holy Spirit will come on them and they will accomplish the will of God.
The real interesting thing, though, is what happens after this Scripture, as the book of Acts unfolds and we see the Disciples do incredible things through their faith in Jesus. They find themselves in all manner of situations—moments of resistance, persecution, beatings, jail, evil spirits, and even death itself. And yet God still does what God wants to do. The circumstances never determine God’s outcome, just like the sky that beautiful morning never guaranteed that I would have a beautiful day. The power for each moment rests in our resting in God’s power.
We must be fueled by the power of the Holy Spirit if we are to do God’s work. Our basic faithfulness is wholly dependent upon God and His grace. It’s not other people, nature’s whim, other people, or even our own attitudes and feelings that fuel and sustain our success. It’s like gospel singer and comedian, Mark Lowry, said in a bit once, “If I have to feel saved to know that I am saved I’m not going to be saved most of the time.” We trust what God has done in Jesus and in the power of the Holy Spirit for what we need. If I want to have a good day, I won’t look to marshmallow skies. My faith is not dependent upon whether the clouds look ominous or someone is in a bad mood. My hope is in Jesus!
If the sky is bright, say “Thank you, Jesus!” If the sky is dark, say “Thank you, Jesus!” You’ve got redemptive work to do today, so let God worry about the sky. You go in the power of His Spirit and in that power help someone say “Thank you, Jesus!”
—Pastor Whit