Early one morning, I headed out to my porch swing with my coffee and dogs following behind me. My heart was heavy, and I just wanted to snuggle up in the early morning coolness of spring and spend quiet time with my dogs. I love these silent, still moments. As I sat sipping my coffee, the scenery changed as the colors of the sky danced off the sun’s rays. My devotion that morning was about clouds. I smiled as I thought about how clouds get a bum rap, but today, they made the sunrise brilliant. For some people, clouds represent gloom, but that morning, they helped to paint incredible sky art. The clouds expanded the sunlight, reflected colors, and cast dazzling rays above me.
Sunrise without clouds is like living without hurdles and hardships. I may try to avoid the hard times, but the clouds in my life bring a certain atmosphere that reflects God’s splendor in me. A life free from difficulties and trials resembles a sunrise without the added beauty. My ability to reflect the Son’s glory diminishes without contrast between dark and light.
I thought about the people in my life I love and admire. They have persevered through storms with God when the sun was hidden. They even laugh at the hard times, knowing they will eventually pass. Even if the trials linger, these people are grounded in joy with their Savior. They walk in radiance, surrounded by a beauty that is hard to explain. I treasure these people, and am thankful they are in my tribe.
Cracks in clouds made the morning sunlight beautiful. My broken places are like the cracks where beauty beams through and makes me shine with strength. Every cloud contains a testimony, and every one is a beautiful sunrise God is painting. He uses 
every tear we cry, every hurdle we leap over, and every cloud in our lives. Nothing is wasted.
A life free of clouds isn’t very appealing. Now, I see cloudy days differently. The clouds have built character, added color, and separated the bland from the brilliant. I pray we can use the clouds of adversity in life to give us more compassion and draw us closer to the One who made them. Our broken places turn to beauty as God continues to paint brilliant sunrises. How comforting to know we are in the capable hands of the true Artist.