The Storm (Part 2)

"Yet he did not waver through Unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God." Romans 4:20
"Immediately the boys father exclaimed, "I do believe; Help me overcome my unbelief!"- Mark 9:24
"Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall". Proverbs 16:18
"In his pride the wicked man does not seek Him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God".- Psalm 10:4
"Where there is strife, there is pride, but wisdom is found in those who take advice".- Proverbs 14:3

Let me paint you a picture...

Imagine eating dinner outside with your cooking group. As you begin to clean up and your instructor gives you a time to meet back up for this evenings teaching on "Pride and Unbelief", you turn behind you and square on you see this massive, gross, soaked black cloud. Literally it is about to burst with electricity and wetness.

Imagine our teams faces as we see it rolling toward us and begin to wonder how we will continue with this particular lesson. Jay, our instructor, tells us a few encounters with storms while we begin to "Bombproof" our kitchen/ eating location and begin to put on rain jackets. Jay begins to pray, hands up toward the storm and sky. "Lord Jesus, I pray that you would physically move this storm and completely move it from our vicinity. I pray that you would teach us and exemplify upon this teaching on Pride and Unbelief and provide a teaching and learning opportunity in your Holy, Holy name, Amen".

Jay and Olivia, in the middle of bomb proofing, don't budge but instead watch as the wind begins to pick up and the cloud bellows toward us. As students we begin to put on our rain jackets to prepare for the coming rain. However our teachers exemplify pure faith in being obedient to God in NOT putting their rain jackets on. We begin to lean against the wind on this flat slab of Granite and while this cloud bubbles and curdles, the lighting becomes more elegant and golden.

Now really begin to picture these details:
Off to the right you look and see that in all of the wind and darkness there are glory rays piercing through the clouds where there is a sunset beginning beyond this storm. Still straight in front of us is this very real storm, this conflict within our hearts clearly reflected upon the wind that God has provided for us to feel and feel Him stripping this unbelief away from us. This storm begins to sway to our left while it continues to break apart on the right. In front of us our hearts and minds are being blown to bits as we begin to worship and praise The Lord in the palm of His creation in His wild land of Wyoming. We are spread out and you look to your left, This storms darkness is now swaying more than ever to your left moving toward Cheyenne, Wyoming. In the darkest part of this repulsive feeling, in the middle of this raging storm you see a rainbow illuminating vertical limit. You fall to your knees because you know tangibly that God is very present in this moment. You thought at first that maybe, Just maybe it was by chance this storm began to move around us but when you see that ROY-G-BIV you can't control your knees and you fall, tears overflowing in awe.

Our team spread out experiencing our heavenly Father in the ways that He has called us to. The ways that He had planned this evening out long before we had even been in existence.

Then you remember seeing those glory rays and within all of this commotion, you almost forgot to look. Truthfully everyone had. We become so focused on the darker aspect of what our fate should have been. The lightning, the rain that didn't even spill a single drop upon us. We rip our eyes back to the right. "Jay!!! Look!!! Look at the Sunset! You're name! It is written"! You can't believe it, your team can't believe it but there it is, Jays name written in the clouds above the sunset. J-A-Y.

You begin to realize that God just took the lesson of Pride and Unbelief in His own hands and let Jay have the night off. Instead He overwhelmed Jay by answering above and beyond anything that we could have ever imagined. Who does that?! A loving Father. A Fathers love that is UNCONDITIONAL.

Can you imagine all of this? Can you believe it?...

He is jealous for me...And for you.

Believe it, because this really happened...