The Lesson of the Storm Clouds

A couple of years ago we were heading West toward San Diego. I was driving the car and feeling very frustrated that the wind was so fierce. I was able to control the car but I was needing to hold tight to the steering wheel to do so. At one point, I actually became irritated at how windy it was and prayed the Lord would calm the winds. I looked up at the storm clouds above us and was amazed by how quickly they were heading toward Yuma. Trust me, these clouds were in a race! I've never seen clouds move that fast.
As I watched the clouds I thought of the rain that would fall in Yuma and was a little sad we were going to miss it because it never rains in our desert city. Suddenly the Spirit reminded me that just a couple days earlier all the members of our church had been asked to fast and pray for rain as we had been through a particularly dry winter (in case you are wondering, for AZ, that means NO precipitation.) My spiritual eyes were then opened and I didn't just see rain clouds any longer. I say the fulfillment of God's promises. In asking Him to calm the winds I was asking Him not to honor the prayers of millions of people - including my own - to send rains to Arizona. I felt ashamed and repented immediately and changed my prayer to asking for strength to endure the winds, instead of asking him to calm the winds. Subsequently, Yuma received tons of rain and it even snowed in parts of Arizona. Our prayers were answered.
I wondered, how often do I ask for a blessing and then fight against the very vehicle which will make that blessing possible? A humbling experience which teaches me great lessons, some hard work in order to earn some more money, the many meetings my husband attends because he is a righteous man. It is something to ponder.
This lesson, however, is not just about prayer and blessings. I still, to this day, remember the sense of awe at the speed those clouds were heading toward Arizona. The only word I can use to describe them is obedient. When the Lord commanded, they moved. A quality I am striving to develop.