The Metamorphosis

This devotional was written by Kelly McFadden:

Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. —Romans 5:3-5

There is a story of a girl who found a caterpillar and brought it home. Shortly thereafter, the caterpillar began building her cocoon. The girl knew that one day, when the time was right, she would emerge and spread her beautiful wings. The girl couldn’t wait! So each day she checked on her caterpillar until one day she noticed a tiny hole. It was time. But as the girl watched, she could see that the butterfly was struggling. So, with a pair of scissors, she carefully opened the cocoon to free the butterfly. The butterfly emerged, but her wings were small and shriveled and her body swollen. The butterfly never did fly. What the girl came to learn was that a part of the metamorphosis for the butterfly was the struggle. In order for the butterfly to fly, it needed to work its way through the small hole. That is how it builds its wing and body strength to fly. Even though the girl was trying to help, in the end, she only hurt the butterfly. A lot of times, if given the option between the difficult path versus the easy path, I readily choose the latter. It is not pleasant to suffer or struggle. But oftentimes, it is a part of the process of growth. It is true: We grow most through experiences which push us to our limits. Yet regularly, we avoid the struggle ourselves, or else as parents, we help our kids avoid the struggle. In the end, like the girl, instead of helping ourselves or others, we only cause long-term hurt. It seems bizarre to rejoice in our sufferings, but the story of the butterfly illustrates why it is not necessarily a bad thing to go through trying times. This is where growth comes. God uses life’s difficulties to help us grow into stronger and better people. These problems develop perseverance, which in turn deepens our character. This then leads to hope, because it deepens our trust and relationship with God.