Sometimes the struggle is exactly what we need.

James 1:12 (ESV)

Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.

A man found a cocoon of the 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 necessary to pass through the tiny opening are God's way of forcing fluid from the body into the wings. The "merciful" snip was, in reality, cruel. Sometimes the struggle is exactly what we need.

Dear Lord, thank You for the struggles that come our way that help make us strong. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

Things to Remember When Life Doesn't Seem Fair

Psalm 28:7 (NIV)

The Lord is my strength and my shield;

    my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.

My heart leaps for joy,

    and with my song I praise him.

We've all had days (and maybe even years) when life just doesn't seem to be going our way! We have all felt like nothing was working and everything was out of whack. We have had frustrating days where we just can’t seem to get anything accomplished.

In the grand scheme of things, a stressful morning doesn't impact life or eternity all that much, but in those longer seasons of joblessness, sickness, financial stress, marriage strain and other ongoing life events, the stress and frustration can seem overwhelming. Over the years as I have dealt with my bad back and the other problems it has brought I have learned a few things that have helped me and I pray they help you as well!

1. Remember that your Character should always be stronger than your Circumstances.

We can’t always control what happens to us, but we can always control how we choose to respond. In those moments when I choose to stop complaining and instead give thanks to God for the good in my life, the parts that seem bad start to seem much less significant. Choose to keep a positive attitude and thankful heart regardless of what you’re going through.

“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

2. Remember that your Struggles always lead to Strength.

Every difficulty in your life, whether big or small, is something God will use to produce more strength, faith and perseverance in you if you let Him! All your pain has a purpose.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28

3. Remember that God’s timing is always perfect.

God’s plans are almost always different from our plans, but His plans are always perfect! Have the patience to wait on His timing instead of forcing your own.

“For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord; plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11

4. Remember that God will never leave your side.

You may feel like you’re going through this struggle all alone, but from the moment you ask Jesus to bring you into God’s family, He will be by your side to the end so never lose hope!

“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.” Deuteronomy 31:6

Dear Lord, we thank You that You are always there for us. We thank You for Your world that we can go to and gain strength from it. Help us continue to stay in Your world that we may be prepared to handle whatever life hands to us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. 

How are you responding to the bullets that come your way?

Proverbs 17:22 (New International Version)

"A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones".


Jerry is the kind of guy you love to meet in the supermarket. He always has a kind word, a funny joke, or, at the very least, a smile. It doesn't take much to bring on that smile. Jerry's happy if all of the wheels on his grocery cart are going in the same direction. If you ask him how he's doing, he's likely to reply, "If I were doing any better, I'd be twins!"


Not many restaurant managers have waiters follow them from one franchise to the next, but Jerry does. They love his attitude. A natural motivator, Jerry can tell if you're having a tough day. "Look on the bright side," he'll say. "If the sun's in your eyes, you sneeze more. It's good for you."


One day a friend said, "I don't get it, Jerry. You can't be positive all the time. How do you do it?"


Jerry replied, "Each morning I wake up and say to myself, 'Jerry, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood.' I choose to be in a good mood. Each time something bad happens. I can choose to be a victim or I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it. Every time someone comes to me complain I can choose to accept their complaining or I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side."


"Yeah, right," the friend protested. "It's not that easy."


"Oh yes, it is," said Jerry. "Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the rest, every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people will affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or a bad mood. It's your choice how you live life."


One day ]erry left the back door of his restaurant open, not knowing how his theory would be put to the ultimate test.


Three thieves walked through the door that day and held Jerry up at gunpoint. While trying to open the safe, his hand, shaking from nervousness, slipped from the combination lock. The robbers panicked. And shot him.


]erry was rushed to the local trauma center. After eighteen hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, he was released from the hospital with fragments of the bullets still in his body. Later, when his friend asked him how he was doing, ,]erry replied, "If I were am better. I'd be twins ...wanna see my scars?" The friend declined, but asked. "Tell me, what went through your mind during the robbery?"


"The first thing that went through my mind was that I should have locked the back door." Replied Jerry. "Then, as I lay on the floor, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live or I could choose to die. I chose to live."


"Weren't you scared?" Asked the friend.


Yes, Jerry was scared. "But the paramedics were great," he told his friend. "They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the emergency room and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, I read, 'He's a dead man.' I knew I needed to take action."


"What did you do?"


"Well, there was a big burly nurse shouting questions at me. She asked if I was allergic to anything. I said 'Yes!"'


The doctors and nurses stopped working and looked at him with concerned wrinkles on their foreheads.


Jerry took a deep breath and said loudly, "I'm allergic to bullets!"


Over their laughter Jerry told them, "Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead." And they did.


Today Jerry is still in the restaurant business. Waiters and waitresses still follow him around, basking in his encouragement, learning from his positive words of advice. Jerry will tell you without blinking that he's alive today because of the skills of some doctors, nurses, and paramedics. But by the time you finish talking with him, you'll know that he's also alive because of his amazing attitude.


Joni Eareckson Tada, who was paralyzed in a diving accident, would admire ]erry's spirit. I've had the privilege of talking with Joni on several occasions, and once she told me: "With profound potential for good, suffering can also be a destroyer. Suffering can pull families together, uniting them through hardship, or it can rip them apart in selfishness and bitterness.... It all depends. On us. On how we respond."


I'm like Jerry-allergic to bullets (it's called ballistophobia). And like Jerry, I cannot choose when or where they will hit. I would love to. But I can't. The one thing I can control is my reaction. My response. My attitude.


How about you? How are you responding to the bullets that come your way?


Which will you choose today: A happy heart? Or bitter to the bone?






Dear Lord we pray for the strength to handle the things that come our way. Help us give each of our cares over to you. I Jesus’ name, Amen.

Struggles Make us Strong!

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day, a small opening appeared. The man sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole.


After a while, the butterfly 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. However, it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. The man continued to watch the butterfly. 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.

The butterfly was never 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 lives. If God allowed us to go through our lives without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. We could never fly!



But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.


-2 Corinthians 12:9-10 (ESV )



Dear Lord we thank you for the struggles that come our way. We pray that we would look at them as a tool that makes us strong. In Jesus’ Name, Amen