STRUGGLE My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing… Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the LORD has promised to those who love Him. [James 1:2-4, 12] For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. [Romans 8:18] Without Struggle There Can Be No Progress! (Frederick Douglas) A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared in the cocoon. The man sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to squeeze its body through the tiny hole. Then it stopped as if it couldnt go any further. So the man decided to help the butterfly. He took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bits of cocoon. The butterfly emerged easily but… it had a swollen body and shriveled wings. The man continued to watch it, expecting that any minute the wings would enlarge and expand enough to support the body. Neither happened. In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around the ground. It was never able to fly. Here is what the man in his kindness and haste didnt understand: The butterfly can fly only because it has to struggle to come out of the cocoon. The pushing forces enzymes from the body to wing tips… strengthening the wing muscles, and reducing body weight allowing it to fly. This process started with struggle and ended with the butterfly flying the moment it came out of the cocoon. One of the messages in this story is that the struggle was part of what the butterfly needed to do in order to fly. Without the struggle, the butterfly was destined to crawl around on its belly and probably die an early death. Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal. [2 Cor. 4:16-18]
Posted on: Fri, 31 Oct 2014 11:11:44 +0000
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