Black Clouds and Quiet Voices

My Dad used to tell me about a comic book character that had the constant companionship of a little black cloud.  There are times in my life that I have felt very much like that character.

I was in Maryland with my family for Easter and my attempts to attend church with my nephew and his wife were thwarted at every turn.  I had a run in my only pair of hose.  I found black splotches on my white jacket.  I arrived at what was the wrong address for the church, and no one (my niece, nephew, or sister) answered the phone or returned text messages when I tried to call for the correct address.

When the prospect of attending church was not looking good, I decided to drive to Sugar Loaf Mountain and commune with God.  I sighed, punched the address into my GPS, and began the drive while enjoying the beautiful spring day.  Before I knew it the road was winding and climbing.  I didn’t recognize the road, but hoped the GPS was taking me there by a different route.  The road continued climbing and winding until it was a single lane through heavy woods.  Every forensic crime show I had ever seen flashed through my mind, and I’m sure I heard a couple of banjos.

Rounding the next turn, I dead-ended right into some body’s driveway.  Someone had moved my mountain.  Sigh.  You can only keep a stiff upper lip so long.

At this point, my phone chirped.  It was my nephew’s wife.  She finally had texted the address of the church…an hour late!  That is what I call adding insult to injury.

There have been many times when I have felt like I was walking around with a black cloud over my head, only to realize that God was in control all the time. Even when I ask God to do things His way, I generally (often without realizing it) have my own vision of how it should be enacted.  Then when God answers my prayer and carries it out according to His plan (but not my vision), I fight against Him every step of the way and that is where the black cloud enters.

God’s love is so immense that He puts these little obstacles in my path.  On this particular weekend, God desired one-on-one time with me and I was not listening.  He had to take drastic measures to get my attention, but I finally understood and the sweet time of communion that we had was like returning to the arms of a lover.

If I start to feel like everything is going wrong, I try to stop looking for the black cloud and I start listening for that quiet voice. I’m never disappointed!

Karen Sleeth

Karen Sleeth has lived in North Carolina for 26 years and in her house for nine years. She shares her yard with a herd of about fourteen deer, a raccoon, a family of possum, a hawk and her young, a wise old owl, many birds, snakes, and a bunny she has seen only once. “I assume it took the warning I gave ‘Run for your life!’” This is Karen’s first year attempting to convince the deer that the yard is not their salad bar. Karen is a member of Christian Assembly Church in Durham.