December 20th
Are You Struggling?
TRUE!!! Sorrow, suffering, trials, and tribulations are wisely designed by God to grow us into his son - Christ-likeness.
My wife, Nancy, looks back on the following experience with sadness. When she was real young she found a cocoon and in it was a butterfly trying to "escape". She thought to herself, I will help the poor creature. She did?? (Good?) NO. The butterfly died. What she did was the cause of death, not life.
I am not sure, nor is she what kind of a cocoon it was, but the cocoon of the emperor moth is flask-like in shape. To develop into a perfect insect, it must force its way through the neck of the cocoon by HOURS OF INTENSE STRUGGLE. Entomologists explain that this pressure to which the moth is subjected is nature's way of forcing a LIFE-GIVING SUBSTANCE into its wings.
What Nancy though she was doing was to lessen the pain and helpless struggle. So as she with small scissors snipped the restraining threads to make the insect's exit painless and effortless. Result? Death. So, since the insect never developed its wings it simply crawled instead of flying - as it was meant to do.
My friend, again as I stated above, sorrow, suffering, trials and tribulations are wisely designed to grow us into Christ-likeness. The refining and developing process are oftentimes slow, but by grace we will emerge victorious. A good scripture is Psalm 4:1,
"You have freed me when I was hemmed in and enlarged me when I was in distress."I don't like the suffering, but I am reminded that there ARE blessings for me. I am looking for them, so with the wings of "an eagle" I will fly.
Prayer
Help. Help. Help, Lord, in our struggles. I ask that your blessings be one this one. As Job said, "When you have tried me, I shall come forth...(as gold). Bless this one, in the name of Jesus, that they truly "come forth".
Amen