I can’t imagine how confused the caterpillar is. He crawls along the ground... little legs propelling him ever so slowly toward his destination. But somewhere in his heart he knows there is supposed to be more to life. He has dreams about it. Day after day he sees his friends “disappear” and in their place emerge beautiful creatures with brightly colored wings... soaring beyond the restrictions of tiny legs.
Yet there he sits tethered to the earth by his tiny feet.
And he begins to doubt the dream.
What has God made me for?
Am I REALLY supposed to fly?
Wouldn’t it be easier to just give in and stay small?
“No, I can’t. I was born to fly.”
“No you weren’t. You were meant to be just like the other caterpillars. Just go over there, eat those leaves, and give up.”
“But I can’t. It’s stamped on my soul. God made me to be a butterfly!”
“If God made you to fly... how come you didn’t start out already doing it?”
A good question. One that many people ask. If God created me for greatness... how come I’m not that way by default? Why do I have to take the long road to my potential... why wouldn’t a loving God give me the shortcut? Why does it take so long to fly?
Because you need the process so you can handle the progress.
You need the cocoon experience. The growth. The challenges. The preparation. The learning. The strengthening. And maybe the hardest of all...
The waiting.
Cocoon time... that time where we develop and change shape... is often the most challenging part of our existence. We wonder when it will happen... or even if it will. God says everything happens in His perfect time:
“For everything there is a season,
a time for every activity under heaven.” Ecclesiastes 3:1
God’s timing may seem slow to us... but it often takes that much time for us to learn to trust Him more. He’s not waiting to act... He’s waiting on us.
And while you’re waiting... everyone else seems to be judging you. But remember, the world sees an ugly cocoon... but God sees the beauty that’s developing inside of it.
The transformation from scared to secure.
The change from sullen to satisfied
The metamorphosis from shackled to set free.
God sees you. Challenged...curious... like the caterpillar... wondering if that stirring in your heart will really happen or not. You’re seeing your friends prosper. Being blessed. They’re moving forward and you seem to be going nowhere.
Make no mistake. God is working in your life. He’s just making sure that your transformation is complete. Everything that is happening right now is for a reason.
Romans 8:28 “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”
Please don’t misread this verse... all things that happen to you won’t be good things. But, like I said last weekend, God can use them for something positive in your life.
- Your pain will build muscles to endure future challenges.
- That break-up will hurt now... but someday you will learn to trust again. Only this time, you’ll know more about yourself.
- The financial pit you find yourself in? An opportunity to re-prioritize and grow.
The cocoon isn’t always pleasant. In fact, getting out of it can be a struggle too. Science tells us that if you try to help a butterfly by cutting open it’s cocoon and letting it out... it won’t survive. It needs the struggle of pushing out... building endurance... strengthening its wings. Without the effort... it fails.
Same for you. Your challenges make you stronger. So you can do more than just survive for the long-term... the difficulties...the transformation.. the pushing through... all build important life-muscle so you can
fly.
It’s stamped on your soul. You were created with a purpose to do something great.
If you woke up this morning feeling like a tiny caterpillar... spend some time with God and let Him reassure you that you were meant for so much more... You’re getting stronger with each passing day... and someday soon, in God’s perfect time, you’ll break free and fly.
