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www.truthworks.com 11 MAR 05 devotion archive |
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STRUGGLES I tell you the Truth, There is a story about a man who found a caterpillar cocoon and was so intrigued when he saw a small opening appear that he sat and watched the cocoon for hours. A small butterfly struggled for hours to try and force its body through the little hole. At one point, it seemed to stop making any progress. The butterfly seemed to have squeezed as far as it possibly could and didn’t seem to be going any further. The man then decided to help, so he took a pair of scissors and snipped away the remaining cocoon and the butterfly emerged easily. But the freed butterfly had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. The man continued to watch expecting the wings to dry and expand and the body to contract over a little time. But neither one happened. In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life with the swollen body and shriveled wings. It never flew. While the man's kindness was understandable, he didn’t understand that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were God’s way of forcing fluid into the wings so that it would be ready for flight once it was free from the cocoon. If God allowed us to go through life with no obstacles, no struggles, we would become crippled in our faith and in our walk. It’s through adversity that we are pushed to persevere. And all of us will face trials of many kinds – I promise you, all people face struggles. Actually, I find two distinctive reasons in God’s word for our struggles.
James 1: 12Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. The Christian who perseveres through struggles is blessed and strengthened through the process by the hand of God. But there is an even greater reason for God allowing us to endure struggles.
2 Corinthians 1: Because I have endured struggles of many kinds and have experienced the comforting of the Holy Spirit, I am then able to share that comfort with others who struggle with similar things. There is a bond that grows from the sharing of struggles that we could never experience if we had never enduring the same distress.
Remember the butterfly. Our lives are very similar in the that our struggles
make us stronger and prepare us for God’s good work.
<*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< Prayer Requests (and Praises!) If you have a prayer request and would like to see it here, please drop me an email so we can share with others. Please pray for a friend of mine and her daughter. Denise Armentrout was just diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Her daughter is one our college students at my church. Denise is facing many days of chemo. Please pray for God’s healing touch on her and also for God to grant her daughter, Kayleigh, with the concentration she needs as she continues through her freshman year of college.
Also, in the past couple weeks, I’ve gotten three different letters from three
different people in three different areas of the world. And all three people
were struggling with deep questions concerning why God would allow them to
suffer through their specific problems that they are now facing. Please join me
in prayer for these three specific people – may God do a work in their lives
during these times in order that they might each know Him more clearly and feel
the comfort of His Spirit in ways they have never experienced. Thanks Please reply if you have prayer requests, comments or simply need an open ear. I always enjoy hearing from you. <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))<
Unless otherwise specified, all scripture quotations taken from the HOLY BIBLE,
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. NIV. |
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Randy & Aaron
