***I have never opened the Bible and read something and then said, “Well God, I just don’t believe You...”***
Essentially, this is EXACTLY what you are doing. In Acts 1 it clearly states that as the disciples saw Jesus taken up in the clouds he will return in that same manner. Now, in order for you to make that somehow “fit” your theology, you are inventing all kinds of insane ideas:
1. Clouds in space: The problem here is that Acts 1 states that a cloud took the Lord into heaven and he will return in the same manner. Clouds don’t exist in space. Clouds exist in our atmosphere. So, in order for your theology to make sense, you must just make up stuff out of Science Fiction.
2. a single cloud covering the entire earth: Every eye will see HIM, not the clouds. Inventing nonexistent global coverage clouds doesn’t help you. Besides, half the earth is asleep.
3. Lightening from the east to west: Again, every eye will see HIM, not lightning. And, that much charged energy in the atmosphere would have deadly consequences. People would be hiding from it.
4. TeeVee: Only American arrogance seems to suggest that the whole world has access to this type of media.
I suppose at this point, you will stray further into as Quix puts it ALICE IN WONDERLAND THEOLOGY to justify making the Bible say what it doesn’t really say. I suppose you will now invent some event to have everyone awake and outside at the same time looking up. But, you still have to contend with the natural cloud in Acts 1 which didn’t cover the earth and wasn’t in space that took the Lord.
God said he made a human being out of mud...And he made a woman out of a rib that was created in the mud...
Now there’s a far-fetched story for ya...
And here’s a good one for ya...Some guy named Jesus claims he was dead...Didn’t have a drop of blood in his veins but he not only came back to life, but he says he now sits up in heaven...
Now you’d think if someone could believe THAT stuff, he wouldn’t worry about a little thing like clouds...