The Butterfly Principle

Testing, testing, is this thing on?! I don’t remember exactly where I heard that statement for the first time, but I can relate it to our current life situation. Sometimes things just don’t seem to go right, no matter what you do. The odds are against you, your out of talent, money and time and there is nothing anyone can do to make whatever it is you are trying to accomplish happen.

As a young man I came up against many challenges in life. At one point during my military career, I had a supervisor that beat me down so bad emotionally, I wasn’t sure I was smart enough or good enough to do anything with the talents the Lord had given me. Fortunately, during that stretch of life, our Father saw fit to move us out of that situation and back to a training base in Oklahoma.

All I wanted to do when we got there was keep my mouth shut and do whatever the leadership wanted me to do. So I flew 5 days a week because we were undermanned. It wasn’t long until I found myself back in the middle of controversy, mostly self inflicted. So I took my lumps, dummied up, kept my mouth shut and went on. Little did I know the Lord was positioning me to take on more responsibility that would ultimately lead to my promotion to Chief several years later.

Today, quit looks really good. Its been a tough year for the world of drag racing. Weather has been the worst I can ever remember, equipment has failed at an unexpected rated, events have been canceled with little or no notice creating significant financial stress and yet in all of this, I know this one thing, He has never failed me. Even when it looks like complete madness, I know, that I know, that I know He is with us.

Stand fast mighty men and women of God, do not loose heart! Duet 31:6 ‘Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.’

Blessings

The Butterfly Principle
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 1 by Os Hillman

“The Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out boldly.” Exodus 14:8

Overprotective parents do their children a great injustice. The caterpillar that lies inside the cocoon will never become the beautiful butterfly if someone cuts open the cocoon prematurely. It is the struggle itself that allows the butterfly to emerge as a strong, new creature of nature.

God understands how necessary this process is. That is why we are allowed to experience difficult, often life-changing events. He even orchestrates them-all for our benefit. What the Israelites thought was a cruel joke when Pharaoh sent troops to pursue them after they had been freed and penned against the shore of the Red Sea became the stage for the most publicized miracle of all time-the parting of the Red Sea. Generation after generation has heard this incredible story of deliverance. God puts us against the “Red Seas” in order to show His power in and through us. If we do not know God can deliver, then we can never learn to trust Him. Circumstances that go beyond our capabilities of solving them place us at God’s complete mercy. This is how He likes it.

Do not fear the calamity that comes your way. If you are faithful to Him in the test, you will see God’s power manifested like never before. Just as the Israelites were able to sing a song of deliverance, you too will have your own testimony of the Lord’s faithfulness; and you will be able to recall it for others to build your faith and theirs.