A Worm to a Butterfly

"Strip yourselves of your former nature (put off and discard your old unrenewed self) which characterized your previous manner of life and becomes corrupt through lusts and desires that spring from delusion: And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind (having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude), And put on the new nature (the regenerate self) created in God’s image, (Godlike) in true righteousness and holiness."  Ephesians 4:22-24 (Amplified)
For years I had the prayer that God would take me, this worm of a human being, and turn me into a butterfly. Make me what Ephesians 4:24 states, "created in God’s image, in true righteousness and holiness." Then as I began studying God’s Word, I realized, I already am a butterfly. The day I accepted Christ as my Savior, I became a new being. Isaiah 61:3 tells me, He took my ashes and gave me beauty. In Isaiah 61:10 it states "(You) clothed me with garments of salvation, (You) have wrapped me in a robe of righteousness…as a bride adorned with her jewels." II Corinthians 5:17 says, "if any person is in Christ he is a new creation." And in Colossians 3:10 (amplified) "And have clothed yourself with the new spiritual self, which is renewed and remolded into...knowledge after the image of Him who created it."

Wow! I already am a beautiful new creation in God’s sight! I have a new spiritual self! And someday I shall even have a new body, a glorified body, and one like Christ’s glorified body. David is one who realized this when he stated in Psalm 17:15 "I shall be satisfied when I wake in thy likeness." Paul tells us in Philippians 3:21 "(Lord Jesus Christ) shall change our lowly body that it may be fashioned like his glorious body…"

You see, I am already a butterfly, what more could I ask for. My soul is a new creation, and soon, my body will be also.

"Like developing butterflies,

We are to shed the cocoon

Of our sinful nature that we might

Emerge into the beauty of Christ."

(Unknown)

Thank you, Lord, for taking this worm and making me into a butterfly! Amen

*From the heart of CC

Hands

Not too long ago, I was looking at my hands. They now have many brown spots, that we call age spots. (Maybe they are sort of like the rings on the tree, the more rings, the older it is; with hands, the more spots, the older the person.) The skin itself is beginning to get that transparent look, and when pinched up, it stays up. I remember as children when my siblings and I would do that to my grandmothers' hands, and we would laugh and giggle. 
But these hands haven't always been this way. There was a time very long ago when they were much smaller, chubby and dimpled, and they would reach up and grab the big hand of my father or mother and feel safe. Even when my children were small, these hands were smooth, slender, the skin tight, and there were no spots. They would reach down and grab the small hand of my son or daughter to keep them safe. These hands would throw a ball, color a picture, or wipe a tear. But time brings about changes, and the young become the old. Just as the dark hair turns white, so the hands change and begin to show their age.

As I sit here musing over my hands, I am reminded of another pair of hands, the hands of our Savior. He used his hands to touch the blind, the sick, the dead; bringing healing and life. It was His hands that were nailed to the cross in my stead. It is His hands, His precious hands that hold me. He has said "He holds me in the palm of his hand" and "No man can pluck me out of His hand". Jn 10:28. Thank you , Jesus, for your blessed hands.