Clouds and Darkness

For many, the exciting anticipation of seeing the peak of Mt. Denali (or Mt. McKinley) ends in disappointment. At an elevation of 20, 310 feet, Denali is the tallest mountain on the North American continent. And of all the mountains on the planet, Denali ranks but third in prominence and isolation, behind Everest in the Himalayas and Aconcagua in the Andes. So, like other unique geographical spots, the mountain is a coveted tourist destination and ranks high on an avid mountain climber’s bucket list.

When we visited the national park in 2002 for 2 nights, we were told only 1 of 3 visitors enjoys an unobstructed view of the mountain. For the rest, clouds obscure the peak, if not a significant portion of the mountain itself.

Fortunately, we were in the 1/3 group! For the entire time!

So stunning, in fact, that we stayed up well after midnight to catch Denali at dusk. Since it was July, the sun set shortly before midnight, but light faded gradually. Darkness lasted less than four hours. When we left our room the next morning and made our way to the overlook, Denali greeted us again in all its glory.

Without a doubt, the highlight of our visit was the helicopter tour taking us up close and personal to the mountain. This was pre-digital photography days, so photo-ops had to be chosen carefully—I had but three rolls of film budgeted for this excursion! It wasn’t nearly enough.

Another tour took us by bus along the only road into the interior of Denali National Park. The road ended at a scenic overlook where the massive valley and mountain ranges stretched out before us. The overwhelming expanse left us speechless in our smallness.

And yet, towering above it all is the mountain. Still visible, though clouds definitely threatened to obstruct the view.

When we left the Denali region heading for Fairbanks, we were so grateful to have been among the minority who are able to see the mountain in all its glory. Had it been enshrouded with clouds, the “satisfaction level” certainly would have been diminished.

Not all our adventures turned out so well.

On a family hiking trip in the Adirondacks, we made our way up a mountain, hoping for some great views at the summit. Alas, it wasn’t to be. At the peak, we were surrounded by trees, preventing any view in any direction. However, climbing a few more steps up a fire tower would take us above tree line for that coveted view. Would have were it not for the misty clouds enveloping us.

On our 25^th Anniversary trip to California, I had mapped out a spectacular hike in King’s Canyon National Park. At the terminus, an overlook offered an expansive view of peaks and valleys—except the clouds and drizzle afforded views of nothing but a hazy mountainside a short distance away.

We arrived at the summit just in time to take in a beautiful valley below—briefly. Even as we stood by the summit marker, we watched a cloud bank heading toward us until we were swallowed up in the fog. So much for the beautiful valley.

When we go to the time, trouble, and expense to make our way to some glorious spot, clouds hiding the glory disappoint us. I’ve had friends visit Mt. Rushmore, but couldn’t see the presidents’ faces. Others traveled to Chicago or San Francisco to take in the skyline, but low-hanging clouds or dense fog left them wanting.

Clouds and enshrouding darkness.

Our frequent experience at a mountain summit offers an apt metaphor for some of our spiritual experiences, doesn’t it?

Psalm 97 begins with a bold, universal assertion: “The Lord reigns!” Over everything. Over everyone. Everywhere. Always.

Later in the psalm, the writer offers some examples of how the Lord’s reign is expressed. Through “fire” that destroys His enemies. Through lightnings that fire up the sky. Through the trembling that rattles the earth. Through “mountains” that melt like wax.

To speak practically, think COVID, wildfires, drought, hurricanes, the Afghanistan disaster, political and moral civil war—in other words, the headlines and breaking news in our increasingly chaotic world.

Everyone sees these things and are even overwhelmed by them. They are expressions of His glory, the songwriter declares (v. 6). Yet, I would suggest, only those who have eyes to see these things as manifestations of the reigning Lord’s sovereign power acknowledge them as expressions of His glory.

Why doesn’t everyone?

Clouds and darkness.

And even those with eyes of faith to see divine sovereignty behind the catastrophes, crises, and chaos couldn’t definitively tell you what, exactly, the reigning Lord is up to and why. Why not?

Clouds and darkness.

The songwriter explains. After proclaiming, “The Lord reigns!” he declares, “Clouds and thick darkness are all around Him.” The mountain peak of His sovereign works hides behind an impenetrable veil. The big picture of all He’s doing with the fires, lightning, trembling earth, and melting mountains eludes us. Is there a grand thread tying together the fires and drought, a microscopic virus, bungled leadership in Washington, the brutal Taliban, the godless Communist Chinese, the ever-deepening divisions in American society (and other nations, too)?

We may say, “Yes! The Lord reigns!”

But what is that thread? What is the big picture? Why is the reigning Lord doing what He is doing? Clouds hide definitive answers from view. They obscure a majestic glory simply too great for our fallen, finite minds to take in and fully appreciate.

Nevertheless, what we can say is whatever He’s doing and whatever His reasons for doing so, it’s right and it’s just.

To be sure, we see a great deal going on in the endless news cycles that is neither right nor just. But the Lord who reigns uses even these things in the exercise of His righteous rule to accomplish His just purposes.

His Word offers many examples. Allow me but one.

The Jewish prophet Habakkuk looked at the godlessness of his people and it baffled him. He saw violence, destruction, iniquity, lawlessness, and injustice and wondered why God wasn’t doing anything about it. “I am,” God assures his prophet. “I’m going to use the Chaldeans to punish my people.”

“Chaldeans!” the prophet cries. “How can you use them? They’re even more wicked.”

“I know, I know. No surprise to me,” replies the Lord who reigns. “Don’t worry, I’ll deal with them, too—in time. Trust me.”

In the end, after reviewing an endless list of evidences of the Lord’s sovereign power, he must acknowledge how clouds and thick darkness obscure full understanding of the divine Glory. Yet he concludes,

Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.

– Habakkuk 3:17-18

An awful lot going on these days, no? The clouds and darkness can easily leave us feeling overwhelmed and frustrated and bewildered and fearful and more.

But behind it all, the Lord reigns!