November 17

James 1  

A man found a cocoon of an emperor moth and took it home to watch it emerge. One day a small opening appeared, and for several hours the moth struggled but couldn't seem to force its body past a certain point. Deciding something was wrong, the man took scissors and snipped the remaining bit of cocoon. The moth emerged easily, its body large and swollen, the wings small and shriveled. He expected that in a few hours the wings would spread out in their natural beauty, but they did not. Instead of developing into a creature free to fly, the moth spent its life dragging around a swollen body and shriveled wings. The constricting cocoon and the struggle through the tiny opening are God's way of forcing fluid from the body into the wings. The merciful snip was, in reality, cruel.

Many times the struggles of life which we consider cruel, are actually producing something very beautiful in our lives. It is hard to appreciate the process while it is going on, but the truth is struggles and trials are God's choice methods of producing maturity. 

That is why James encourages us to consider it pure joy when we go through these cocoon experiences.

So the question is, can you trust God for your cocoon experience?  I would like to ask it in two different ways. Can you TRUST God? And can YOU trust God? Both are critical for discovering joy in the midst of the cocoon.  

For us to TRUST God we must believe that God is loving and in sovereign control. It is not easy to TRUST God during times of adversity. No one enjoys pain, and when it comes, we naturally want to relieve it as quickly as possible. But in order to discover the joy of adversity we must see it through His eyes and not ours. Joy comes when we say, "I can't explain what God is doing in the adversity but I trust that He is in control; He is wise and He is loving."  When we trust this God, we can have joy.

So I end with this question. Can YOU trust God? To show OUR trust when in the middle of adversity, we willingly continue to obey Him, and intentionally worship Him and cheerfully share the good news with others. James says if you have this attitude and persevere under the trial, you will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.

 

 

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"Multiplying leaders to change the world"