Overcoming Troubles
Imagine you are an ant, moving across a lawn, when suddenly you come across a rock. To the ant that rock is a pretty big obstacle that will block its movement and prevent it from going forward without changing direction. Now imagine you are a bird flying over the same lawn, looking down at the rock from a great height – it will appear to be very small. The bird faces no obstruction. The rock is still there, it’s still the same size, but the perspective has changed.
Have you got struggles in your life? If we are being honest I think most of us would say that we do. And so many people get totally caught up in worrying about their troubles, and can’t see any way past it. Their perspective on the problem is wrong. Like the ant they can only see what id directly in front of them, not the bigger picture that is clear to the bird. No matter how big the trouble in front of you appears it is important to remember that in the scale of eternity it will only list for milliseconds even if it is with you for the rest of your life. And God is bigger than any trouble that could be facing you.
“For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever”. 2nd Corinthians 4v17-18
There is an illustration I have come across a couple of times over the past few weeks that I want to share with you. Butterflies and moths go through a stage in their growth when they are in a cocoon. At the end of this they start to emerge. At this point you could use a knife to cut open the cocoon and release the butterfly/moth. But then it would be too weak to survive. The struggle to break out of the cocoon is nature’s way of strengthening it. Likewise God can use troubles in our life to strengthen us, and prepare us for greater things. And it is important to remember that He will not let us go through more than we can stand. But sometimes we need to remember to rely not just on our own strength to get through, but also on His.
Don’t fix your gaze on trivial issues that will soon be gone. Don’t let them hold you back from becoming who you are called to be in Christ. Pray about them, rely on God to help you get through, and receive the glory that lasts forever.