Devotional, September 12, 1999

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Each week you will be able to read a devotional
thought which we hope you will find
enjoyable and comforting
as well as
insightful and challenging.

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared, he sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could go no further.

So the man decided to help the butterfly, he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged
easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings.

The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time. Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body
and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly.

What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get
through the tiny opening were God's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight
once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If God allowed us to go through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as we could have been. We could never fly.

I asked for Strength...
And God gave me Difficulties to make me strong.

I asked for Wisdom...
And God gave me Problems to solve.

I asked for Prosperity...
And God gave me a Brain and Brawn to work.

I asked for Courage...
And God gave me Danger to overcome.

I asked for Love...
And God gave me Troubled people to help.

I asked for Favors...
And God gave me Opportunities.

I received nothing I wanted.
I received everything I needed!!!

Have a great day!

In Jesus' name, Amen.