Butterflies
A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it 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. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. The man continued to watch the butterfly > because 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. It never was 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! I asked for Strength......... And God gave me Difficulties to make me strong. I asked for Wisdom......... And God gave me Problems to solve. I asked for Prosperity......... And God gave me Brain and Brawn to work. I asked for Courage......... And God gave me Danger to overcome. I asked for Love......... And God gave me Troubled people to help. I asked for Favors......... And God gave me Opportunities. I received nothing I wanted ........ I received everything I needed! May God Bless You May God Bless you with unspeakable joy, not only in the world to come, but in this world also. May your path be bright and full of light everywhere you go. May God tell darkness that it must flee at your command. And, I pray your feet will never stumble out of God's plan. May the desires of your heart come true, And may you experience Peace in everything you do. May Goodness, Kindness, and Mercy come your way. And, may you gain Wisdom and grow in the Lord everyday.
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Meditation for the Day
27. Blessings in Disguise
The fortunes and
misfortunes of a villager The only problem with sadness, desperateness,
anger, hopelessness, anxiety, anguish, misery, is that you want to get rid of
them. That's the only barrier. You will have to live with them. You cannot
just escape. They are the very situation in which life has to integrate and
grow. They are the challenges of life. Accept them. They are blessings
in disguise. A man had a very beautiful horse, and the horse was so rare
that even emperors had asked the man to sell it--whatsoever the
price--but he refused. Then one morning he found that the horse had been
stolen. The whole village gathered to sympathize, and they
said, "How unfortunate! You could have got a fortune--people were
offering so much. You were stubborn and you were stupid. Now the horse
is stolen."
But the old man laughed; he said, "Don't talk nonsense! Only say
that the horse is no more in the stable. Let the future come, then we
will see."
And it happened that after fifteen days the horse came back, and not
only alone--it
brought a dozen wild horses with it from the forest. The whole village
gathered, and they said, "The old man was right! His horse is back
and has brought twelve
beautiful horses with him. Now he can earn as much money as he
wants." They went to the man and they said, "Sorry. We could
not understand the future and the ways of god, but you are great! You
knew something about it; you have some glimpse of the future."
He said, "Nonsense! All that I know now is that the horse has come
back with twelve horses--what is going to happen tomorrow, nobody
knows."
And the next day it happened that the old man's only son was trying to
break in a new horse and he fell, and his legs were broken. The whole
town gathered again
and they said, "One never knows--you were right; this proved to be
a curse. It would have been better that the horse had not come back. Now
your son will remain crippled for his whole life."
The old man said, "Don't jump ahead! Just wait and see what
happens. Only say this much, that my son has broken his legs--that's
all."
It happened after fifteen days that all the young men of the town were
forcibly
taken away by the government because the country was going to war. Only
this old man's son was left, because he was of no use. Everybody
gathered--they said, "Our sons are gone! At least you have your
son. Maybe he is crippled, but he is here!
Our sons are gone, and the enemy is far stronger; they are all going to
be murdered.
In our old age we will have nobody to look after us, but you at least
have your son and maybe he will be cured."
But the old man said, "Say only this much--that your sons have been
taken by the government. My son has been left, but there is no
conclusion."
Just state the fact! Don't think of anything as a curse or a blessing.
Don't interpret it, and suddenly you will see that everything is
beautiful.
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TODAY'S POSITIVE THOUGHT:
Your inner wisdom is your greatest source of
truth. Use it often.
TODAY'S POSITIVE AFFIRMATION:
I connect easily and often to my inner wisdom
to get all the answers I need.
TODAY'S POSITIVE VISUALIZATION:
I close my eyes and allow myself to connect to
the Divine within. I affirm that within this inner
presence are all the answers I need. I allow the
truth contained within to saturate my being until
I am filled with truth. I imagine myself going
through my day stopping often to connect to the
Divine wisdom within me. I see myself using this
inner wisdom in everything I do. In my mind's eye
I see myself making wise decisions and sharing
this inner wisdom with others. I imagine myself
experiencing the confidence that comes from having
access to the wisdom of the universe. I combine
these thoughts and images with a feeling of great
joy and let them go.
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SENT FROM KYVELI.. THANKS YOU FOR THE HELP