Cloudy by nature

I am back in Honduras after a long trip to the US to visit supporting Churches, supporters, friends, family and a combination of all of the above.  As well Valerie and I got away for two weeks to celebrate our 20th anniversary (which was in August) finally fulfilling our desire to see Iceland, as well as three other countries in the Scandinavian area.  It was...revitalizing.  I could go on for an entire post or more.  Remind me to tell you about it the next time we meet should you truly desire to hear more.  

Speaking of wanting to hear more, I was humbled and grateful to hear from a few people that were encouraging with kind words for these blog posts.  

So here I am again.  Back home again, but also in that place that it seems more and more often I find myself of not so much doubt, but a lack of clear direction, of a path that is easy to follow.

Decisions are to be made, as always, but big decisions, possibilities, opportunities, challenges, and such are looming and seemingly needed with great speed.  Greater speed than which I seem to be capable, and requiring skills which I continue to lack.  But then again, that requires us to take steps of faith, and that is good for us.  And to this all noble sounding affair I say...yuck.  Sometimes it tastes like eating your vegetables.  Anyway, while taking a walk in our nice new neighborhood today, I had a chance to see the closest thing we get to a sunset here...one reflected off the clouds.  

It hit me that while I am pulled in different directions...sometimes by my own inclinations, or people in the mission, or people outside that offer opinions or ideas or from a host of other avenues...that it reminds me of the clouds.

From different perspectives, different looks...and all the while they shift, change, grow, shrink, and look different to all around.  Their maker knows this all and more, but to us observers they can be confused in the process.  Sometimes we can feel alone in this...we forget that while the path, the colors, the feels can be hard to decipher, that He is with us through it all.

So while I have some hard decisions potentially looming down at the horizon, will "storms" develop in having to stop some great things we are doing, or not be able to do other great things?...and plenty a situation to read, improve, and evaluate in the here and now, I will move forward even in my "unacceptableness" to the task, taking some steps of faith, asking for direction from above and from around, and thank God that He is in control of the clear as well as the cloudy days and everything in between.

In the span of seven minutes I took these pictures.  Change happens fast sometimes, whether we want it or not.  The future is cloudy...but regardless of what we can see or know, of whom is in control we can be sure. That gives me a different perspective to observing the skies.