This Too Shall Pass

Has your mother ever said those four words? Mine would as she consoled me with reminders of inevitable change. The absolute was fine in an undesirable situation but heartbreaking when not.

But one day the rollercoaster will end. All accounts will be settled. Nothing will need to change. If you are a believer in Jesus Christ you will be complete; transformed into the full likeness of Him. We, too, will be at the right hand of God. Every earthly situation, good and challenging, will be laid at the Throne of Grace…all for the glory of God.

Why accept Jesus? Because it was He who defeated death once and for all. Only He is worthy to break through the barrier of sin in order to give us access to God. Without accepting Jesus you will experience the ‘second’ death. It is never God’s desire for anyone to spend eternity in hell, but He is a gentleman who has given us the choice to choose life or death. What will you choose today?

“What a God we have! And how fortunate we are to have him, this Father of our Master Jesus! Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we've been given a brand-new life and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven—and the future starts now! God is keeping careful watch over us and the future. The Day is coming when you'll have it all—life healed and whole.

I know how great this makes you feel, even though you have to put up with every kind of aggravation in the meantime. Pure gold put in the fire comes out of it proved pure; genuine faith put through this suffering comes out proved genuine. When Jesus wraps this all up, it's your faith, not your gold that God will have on display as evidence of his victory.” 1 Peter 1:3-7 The Message

If you have chosen life then realize it doesn’t start when we go to Heaven…it starts now! You have everything to live for now!. Rejoice in all things for there will be a Day when we will celebrate our genuine faith. Keep on keeping on because this too shall pass.

Action Packed

In my opinion—if you’ve seen one action packed movie…you’ve seen them all. My husband has agreed to disagree with me for they are his favorite. “Oh, gee, wonder how many things will be blown up in this movie?” For which he replies, “Better than watching a movie with a bunch of kissing.” Oh, really! He talks like a Husband 101 dropout.

Watching soldiers scatter on the screen makes it difficult for me to separate the good from the bad guy. My face stares at the screen with total confusion but hubby knows exactly who everybody is, what maneuvers they use, and can even predict their next move.

This could explain why I’ve never been attracted to the study of the Old Testament. After the story of the Garden of Eden story it’s all downhill from there. Eve sins, Adam sins, then their sweet little children fight until one is dead. Who wants to read about bloodshed everyday in their Bible reading? Where’s the love story? Battle after battle as God’s chosen are faithful to obey one minute then run after idols the next. I mean really…where’s the love?

No doubt something big had to take place to stop the madness. And, it did when you start to read the New Testament when God became a tiny baby. Physical battles of human and animal bloodshed were not enough to bring a permanent end for individual freedom. God loved humanity so much that He gave His beloved Son to shield us from a gruesome and violent eternity.

Yes, one day the transformation process will end. Boot camp for eternity will be complete for there will be a day when He either whispers our name to come home or we’ll see Him appear in the clouds. One day the violence will end, pain will cease, and tears will not be necessary.

For those who declare they have tasted a taste of Heaven with near death experiences share it was the great love they felt the moment they sensed the presence of God and Heaven’s  residents. Love so overwhelming; human words are not appropriate. Now that’s a love story with a happy ending.

‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Revelation 21:4

Thank Him that one day the madness will end and there will be eternal peace.

PS…Today is the National Day of Prayer and Happy Mother’s Day this weekend!

A New Do

As we conclude this week with part 4 of our 5 part series on transformation entitled, “Will Be a Process,” it is easy to agree with a resounding yes. This life is not only a test but an opportunity to grow into the likeness of Jesus Christ.

For the past 3 years I feel like I’ve been on a growth-spurt that I actually solicited with a simple prayer, “Father, make me like your Son.” Little did I realize the cost, but little did I realize the blessing.

Please forgive me for skipping last week’s post. It has been a challenge with a right broken shoulder to do any task. I’ve discovered the weakness of my left hand as I’ve been determined use another weak part of my body—my right brain—to teach myself how to do chores with having my right arm in a sling. My poor little left thumb is swollen because it’s never worked so hard to grab things in the past.

The doctor has confirmed it is a miracle that I do not need the extensive surgery he first suggested. Because of your prayers God has enabled my body to produce the needed compound to patch up and heal the shattered pieces of my shoulder. Thank you for your prayers. Yes, God still heals!

God’s choice to heal my arm has not stopped at the shoulder but has moved on to my heart. Here are just a few lessons He’s taught me in my request to grow into the likeness of His Son; how present the Lord is in my day; prayers are always heard; patience is a must; pain hurts; family and friends love me no matter what; the world often rushes by without seeing affliction; how amazing the body is to repair itself; how others have suffered and have learned to adapt to their injury; how sweet it is when someone holds the door open; how much a left hand can do; and most of all…how it’s okay to have others blow dry your hair. I have a new slogan this week that reads, “Transforming a Broken Wing into Hairstyles of Humility.” Lately, my hairstyle has looked exactly like my husband’s. Little wonder why.

Praise God for opportunities to transform as we thank Him for experiences that teach us how others feel. As we pray for Jesus’ 5 senses to become our senses too, we can count on an eventful life; never a dull moment with Christ.

“Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.” Psalm 25:5

How is He guiding and teaching you today?

Next week we will begin the last part of our series on “Will It Ever End”.

Twist and Shout

Not startled by the sound of the 5:00am alarm on a Monday morning proved that retiring for bed early the night before paid off. My husband and I leaped out of bed to get a head start on our coffee drinking. He had packed the night before so as not to be pushed for his early morning flight to Los Angles.  

“Where are you going?” he asked as I sprinted out the bedroom door. “Thought I’d grab my laptop and check on my task list to see what I have going on today. I’ll be right back. Be thinking of what you’d like for breakfast.” Today we would, both, accomplish much.

My memory served me right as there sat old faithful on the kitchen desk in the brightness of a streetlight. No reason to turn on a light for this was going to be a quick and deliberate trip. But then…the dance began as my foot stepped down on the lid of my grandson’s sandbox in the foyer, which was not his fault. (Further explanations will be another blog one day.) I began to twist in the air like a goofy ballerina on the lid of a Little Tikes turtle shell made of plastic. I landed on the tile floor with great force and…you guessed it…I shouted.

I knew immediately this was another bad fall. Five falls within four years is not an impressive record. I lay on the cold tile, in the dark, unable to move. The pain shot up my neck and down to my fingertips as I listened to the sounds of my husband starting the process of getting ready in the back bathroom.

“I think you need to take me to the emergency room,” I greeted him with my return. “What?!” In a split second our day had changed. My X-Ray proved a fractured shoulder in several broken pieces. My split second decision to save my laptop left the bone in my right arm in pieces. Did I really think my laptop was more precious to save than my own personal injury? Hindsight tells me I should have let go of the computer and hung on to the counter top.

What would you have done? I can clearly hear your reply, “I would have turned the light on!”

“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” Psalm 147:3

I’m praising God today for not only putting the pieces of my heart back together but His ability to do the same for my shoulder. He can heal anything! Do you believe that too?

Outsourcing

“What is it, again, that we do?” I repeated to my husband when we first started working together. He patiently answered, “We deliver body parts.” Body parts? (Try explaining that to your closet friends.) Then, he would smile and remind me, “That’s automotive body parts. We are a logistics company for dealerships. They outsource their deliveries to us.” I’d slowly shake my head in my blonde kind of way.

It was a process for me to understand the industry of transportation but one day I slapped my desk and shouted, “Oh, I get it! We pick up and drop off. Companies sell their goods and we deliver them.” As simple as this may sound—it took awhile to understand the total operation from start to finish.

Over the years of working beside my husband I have had many opportunities to ease drop on this fascinating industry. We are all turning into a global society that wants our items delivered…fast! Other methods can take too much of our precious time. Threshold services have enabled the world to receive items we were not able to receive at one time. As I have now experienced the Lord opening doors of opportunity for much more than automotive parts.

A couple of decades ago few were familiar with the buzzword outsourcing. At first, companies were skeptical to trust a portion of their business to another. However, with time, it has proven to bring about benefits such as: saving cost, focusing on their core business, improve quality, reduce time-consuming methods, and getting rid of the delivery headaches. It has been a win-win for all.

God is calling us to outsource to Him too. He yearns for us to do what we were originally created and designed to do while He does what He does best…take care of our headaches. He truly wants our core assignment to be Jesus to others by learning to live with the qualities of, loving others, being at peace, and living in abundant joy. Why is that we want to hang on to worry, fear, anxiety, and stress? Not sure, because we don’t have to. God says to outsource our worries to Him so He can bring about victories from even the worse of circumstances. Trust He will deliver you in perfect time.

“The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles.” Psalm 34:17

Would you trust the Most High Deliverer? It’s His specialty.

Big Deals

Think back to when you were a child…what was your main concern? Scrapped knees from accidents on roller skates or a bike were no fun. I busted through the front door of my house many times screaming in pain. Bloody knees were tragedies to me.

One bike accident literally knocked me out cold at the age of 10. My neighborhood friends stood in awe as I demonstrated how fast I could peddle. It was dusk with streetlights only beginning to warm up for the night. I was headed towards the familiar sidewalk on the busy traffic side of my block. It would be the grand finale to whip on the sidewalk and come to a sketching halt in order to leave permanent skid marks as a monument to all.

I misjudged the indention and hit the curb instead. My bike instantly stopped while my body soared in the air like a rocket. My friends screamed when I landed for they thought I was dead. But I wasn’t and came to when the cutest teenage boy on our block scooped me up to take me home to my parents.

Not much blood but was left with a swollen wrist. Two weeks later we went to the doctor to have an X-ray for the wrist that didn’t stop swelling. The ball of my wrist had actually come out of the socket and was now healing in that position. The doctor asked me how much I liked Mickey Mouse while he took my arm and re-broke my wrist in his office. No Novocain. That was a very big deal to me.

Life moves on to bigger deals, doesn’t it? Pain and suffering can intensify in other ways besides physical. I forgot to mention last week that the temperature of the flame used to refine gold is 2,400 degrees. So, how about the heat in your heart for peace, understanding, love, acceptance, and more? The process Jesus uses to bring us to the simplicity of His sweet love is a process through the trials of this life.

“…We glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” Romans 5:3-4

Have you thanked God for your sufferings? They can be very productive.

Hot Stuff

“In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.” 1 Peter 1:6-7

Who in the Leaping Butterfly blog world has experienced a hot flash? I have, had, and still having! Tell me…why does it take years to get through this process? As if the emotional heat isn’t hot enough at this stage it can easily be combined with unexpected buckets of ‘Gatorade’ from head to toe.

But things could be worse—I could be a piece of gold. I’ve heard of a process called the refinement of gold, but had never seen it until today; thanks to all our friends at YouTube.com. I encourage you to take a look too.

In a nutshell, the scrap metal is placed in a crucible for a torch melt. Once the metal has melted into a liquid consistency it is slowly poured into a bowl of cold water. Because the metal drains in droplets, it will form into cornflake-type pieces. Later, the pieces are mixed with Nitric Acid. Soon they form together at the bottom of the bowl as a yellow sponge type substance. The next step is to melt the metal again to remove all traces of water, acid, and alloys. Alloys are a less valuable metal that could be mixed with the purest of gold. It would reduce the quality of greater worth should this final step be left out.

Ever felt like you’re having a meltdown? I have and knock on wood…I’ve gone five whole minutes without one.  But, meltdowns can refine us as long as we surrender to the work of our refiner’s hands. Otherwise, the Refiner may have to turn up the heat to rid us of the alloys in our lives.

“Metal is refined and purified in a furnace; the Lord purifies and tests the heart.” Proverbs 17:3

Thank you, Lord, for my meltdowns. Melt and mold me into whatever you wish, Father. I desire for my heart to be pure, brilliant, and a glorious reflection of You.