Nov 4, 2025
7 min read
We know this verse by heart. We quote it, we post it, we sing about it. And for the most part, trusting God comes naturally—when life feels clear, when prayers are being answered, when things are going well.
But what about when it’s not easy?
What about when life is confusing, painful, or uncertain?
When the sky feels dark, when disappointment lingers, and when it feels like God is nowhere to be found?
If you’ve ever walked through a season like that, you’re not alone. Many of us have experienced moments when it feels like we’re living under a dark cloud—when everyone else’s life seems bright and sunny, but we can’t seem to find our way out of the shadow.
Maybe you’ve even said, “God, I know You’re there, but I don’t feel You right now. I can’t hear you right now.”
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
In 1 Kings 8, King Solomon gathers the people of Israel to dedicate the temple he had built for the Lord. It’s a moment of great celebration as the priests bring the Ark of the Covenant—the symbol of God’s presence—into the Most Holy Place.
And then, something extraordinary happens:
1 Kings 8:10–12 (NIV)
“When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud filled the temple of the Lord. And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled his temple.
Then Solomon said, ‘The Lord has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud.’”
Wait—what?
“The Lord has said that He would dwell in a dark cloud.”
God DWELLS in the dark cloud.
That cloud in the temple wasn’t a sign of God’s absence—it was a manifestation of His glory. What looked dark to human eyes was actually filled with His presence.
Could it be that the same is true for us? That in our darkest seasons, when life feels heavy and unclear, God is closer than we realize?
Scripture supports this truth again and again.
Psalm 97:2
“Clouds and thick darkness surround him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.”
Psalm 18:9, 11 (NIV)
“He parted the heavens and came down; dark clouds were under his feet…
He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him—the dark rain clouds of the sky.”
God isn’t afraid of the dark. In fact, He wraps Himself in it.
When we cry out to Him in distress—when we’re overwhelmed, hurting, or afraid—He doesn’t stay distant. He draws near. He clothes Himself in the very darkness that we think is separating us from Him, and He uses it to come closer, to fight for us, and to bring us out safely.
You might have seen your dark seasons as times when God was far away. But here’s your reminder that He was there all along, hidden in the cloud, working in ways you couldn’t yet see.
The psalmist put it this way:
Psalm 139:7–12 (NIV)
“Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?…
If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,’ even the darkness will not be dark to you;
The night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.”
We may feel lost in the dark, but God sees perfectly there. He is not confused, not absent, not surprised. The darkness doesn’t hide us from Him—it actually becomes the place where He reveals Himself in new ways.
We even see this theme carried into the New Testament. When Jesus was transfigured on the mountain with Peter, James, and John, Scripture says:
Luke 9:34–35 (NIV)
“While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and covered them… A voice came from the cloud, saying, ‘This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.’”
So maybe those dark clouds hovering over your life aren’t there to destroy you. Perhaps they’re there to remind you that God is near. He dwells in the dark cloud. He’s working even when you can’t see it. He’s fighting battles you don’t even know are happening.
The next time you find yourself in a dark season, take heart—because the same God who met Solomon in the temple, who wrapped Himself in clouds of glory, and who promises to return in the clouds one day, is with you right now.
Trust Him—even when you can’t see through the clouds.
Because He’s closer than you think.