a couple of storm clouds...

you could make the argument that i dont know much... in fact...i know very little... well, i know a little about a lot and a lot about a little... im not an expert in really much of anything... i wouldnt argue any of that...

but... living here in the pacific northwest... my whole life, i know about one thing pretty good and thats rain... i have done a lot in this rain... some of my fondest memories are in the rain...

when i was young i loved to play in the rain... i would make little boats out of twigs and leaves and let them run down the gutter along our street... all the way to the storm drain...

i loved to play soccer... and in high school there was nothing better than a match in the rain... slide tackling on the wet, muddy ground... mud caked to your legs and cleats and the feeling of sweet victory in beating another team and then knowing that they had to travel home, cold, wet and humiliated...

i remember taking walks with my lovely "bride to be" in portland in the rain... i was with her so i didnt even realize it was raining...

now... as a dad... i can experience my children enjoying the rain...cole and abby playing in the back yard in the rain... in their rain boots... ethan looking for the worms after a good rain... noah playing football and muddying himself (and others) up... these are good memories...

i also know the difference between a rain cloud and a storm cloud... rain clouds are bearable... storm clouds are difficult...

this weekend i experienced a couple of storm clouds... no it didnt storm here in dupont...we didnt have rain, thunder and lightning like you might expect... these are storm clouds in life...

saturday i attended a funeral/memorial service for a man at our church... i didnt know him too well, but i would say he was a friend... he was taken from us too early, by the worlds standards... he was only 58... our church and this family had dealt with a large storm cloud roughly a year ago in the passing of his son... now his wife and daughter are left to deal with both of these losses... we as a church community will do our best to help them through this... their extended family will be there for them... but that storm is real... the clouds are big and dark... the thunder is loud and the lightning is close... so i ask "is there a silver lining to all clouds?"... i dont know the answer to that... but on this big, dark storm cloud there was... at the service we heard story after story... testimony after testimony of his love, his love for his family, love for his savior, love for his community(church), love for his co-workers... we also heard about his strong finish... the way don finished his earthly life...changed my life forever... he never asked God why me? why did i get the terminal cancer? no... he trusted the One that gave him breath... he trusted the One that he knew would take him home... his faith in Him... caused him to finish well...he never wavered, and now he is home... with his Savior... the sender of this cloud...

another storm cloud rolled in on sunday... my pastor... my friend lloyd and his family... announced that they are moving... he and his family will be leaving our community for another that God has lead them to... God has lead him to iowa... away from us... how can this cloud have a silver lining? im not sure i know yet... but if i trust God... i know that his plans are bigger than me... losing a friend.... my family losing good friends... our church losing a leader and mentor... these are all difficult things... but i know He is in it... we will miss our friends... and hopefully they will miss us... but we all will know that this is Gods will...

storm clouds are scary sometimes and we dont know how long they will stick around or the damage they will do... but i do know this... the One who sends the clouds... controls the clouds... and loves me enough to be with me through the storms of life that come my way...

a new week... another opportunity for His faithfulness to be shown to me in full... when i had a meal with a friend today... and we talked... we talked about Jesus and His desire to weather any situation with us if we only let Him... it was during this conversation that i saw the Son, peak around the clouds and smile...