Life Struggles – “A man found a cocoon of an emperor moth. He took it home so that he could watch the moth come out of the cocoon. On the day a small opening appeared, he sat and watched the moth for several hours as the moth struggled to force the body through that little hole. The moth seemed to be stuck and appeared to have stopped making progress. The man, in his kindness, decided to help the moth. So he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The moth then emerged easily. But its body was swollen and small, its wings wrinkled and shriveled. The man continued to watch the moth because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to support the body. Neither happened! In fact, the little moth spent the rest of its life crawling around with a small, swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly. The man in his kindness and haste did not understand that the struggle was required for the moth to get through the tiny opening. It was necessary to force fluid from the body of the moth into its wings so that it would be ready for flight upon achieving its freedom from the cocoon. Freedom and flight would only come after the struggle. By depriving the moth of a struggle, he deprived the moth of health.
Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need. If we were to go through our life without any obstacles, we would be crippled. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. Give every opportunity a chance, leave no room for regrets, and don’t forget the power in the struggle.” (Roger Knapp). This story reminded me of Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God.” The words “work together” simply mean while we wait – He works. We can impatiently interfere and interrupt the divine process of God.
Our haste can hinder the end process of His working. We need to stop trying and start trusting the process of the Lord in all things. At times it seems the Lord is absent, but He is still active. He continues to “work all things together for good” even as you sleep. He is too wise to do wrong. We need let Him finish His divine process. “After that ye have suffered a while (process), make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you” (I Peter 5:10). You know when the process is passed because you have become stronger, sweeter, and more sensitive. Don’t fret – have faith. Fretting and faith are incompatible and cannot exist together. Good news! Whatever you face, it is also included in “all things.” It may be your companion, children, friends, health, finances, stress, a broken heart, or a broken home. Let’s learn from the moth and do not interfere with or interrupt with His divine process as He is working (blending) all things together for our good. Don’t prolong the process. Stop trying and start trusting. After the process, you will learn that He worked all things together for your good and His glory.
Thought: Three Bible Peaces: Peace with God – Sinner (Rom. 5:1) – Peace from God – Son (2 Cor. 1:12) – Peace of God – Servants (Phil. 4:7) – TC
