BUT I'M HURTING BAD
Pain, struggles, anguish, loss--we all experience them. Often times I've commented,"I don't know how people go on without the security of knowing the Lord. " My Teaching Leader in BSF is a pilot. After he has completed his task and left the plane, he takes one walk around the aircraft just to be sure everything looks satisfactory to him. When he recently attended a funeral of an unbeliever and he passed the casket, he said he had the same feeling. Nothing there; just an empty shell. And that, my friends, is a tragedy. But being saved by the grace of God does not ensure us that there will be no more hardships. Count on them. But also count on a loving Lord to help us through those valleys. And if you don't know Him, then who else do you have to turn to?

Our current lead pastor has begun a mens' bible study called Seeking Him. Graciously, he meets with 15 or so men at 6:30 AM and again at 6:30 PM with a similar number. What a blessing to have the pastor in your bible study! He shared a great story this week which I want to share.

As a young boy in Ohio, he found a cocoon. He put it in a jar and punched holes in the lid for air. Nothing happened for a long time. Till one day. The cocoon started to split. He took it outside, holding onto the stick. He had been patient, but when it revealed part of itself, he decided to help it out. He dug away at the cocoon and helped free the moth. Who came out with deformed wings. His eighth grade teacher explained to him that the moth needed to do it on its own. The struggle allowed fluid to be released to strengthen its wings. By lending a helping hand, he had hurt the development of the moth emerging.

And that's the way with God. Sometimes He, in His infinite wisdom, allows us to struggle. In order to grow. He could help. He can do anything. But He wants us to have strong wings. To soar.