God is in the Push!

Recently as I was spending time with the Lord, He showed me a picture of a chrysalis. The chrysalis was vibrating violently and I knew that the butterfly inside was attempting to break through the thick surface and emerge. As I focused on what was soon to occur, I heard the Lord say, "I am in the push!"

So many people feel as if they are in a season of birthing something. Many have been in a long, intense time of labor. Like the butterfly in the chrysalis, your entire focus may have been on what is on the other side of your birthing process. It may feel like that is the place where you will finally engage with God, or the place where you will finally fulfill your purpose in Him.

But, as I heard God emphatically say, "I am in the push! ", I instantly felt His pleasure over the process of birthing. God is in the process! It is never His delight to cause us pain, but He is more intent on seeing us mature fully, and lack nothing in Him, than He is on temporarily easing our pain. If staying in our "chrysalis" one more week strengthens our wings to allow us to soar once we break through, then as our loving Father, He will provide for that time.

Birthing is an intense process, and it is easy to feel frustrated, hopeless, or even abandoned. But, God is revealing that He has not left you alone, but is intimately involved in your process, overseeing every detail to make sure you emerge beautiful and powerful like the butterfly. God is not just on the other side of your birthing process, but He is right there in the trenches with you, cheering you on, and giving you whatever you need to see your process through to completion.

Amazing transformation takes place within the dark walls of the chrysalis, and any onlooker might say that it looks unimportant and ordinary. But, the process going on inside is anything but ordinary. It is extraordinary, in fact, as the word "metamorphosis" which is used to describe the transformation process, can also be defined in the Google Dictionary as "a change of the form or nature of a thing or person into a completely different one, by natural or supernatural means." The work God does in the lives of each one of us is beyond our comprehension. I believe He is thrilled to display His glory through each person as each one reveals a different and unique facet of His kingdom. But, this revealing can take time!

If you feel stalled in your season of birthing, or feel like you are "stuck" in the birth canal, be encouraged! God is perfecting that which He started in you, and He will not stop short of seeing you emerge as a completely new and different creation, fully equipped for the assignments He has marked for you in this next season. God is in the push!

I pray with great faith for you, because I'm fully convince that the One who began this glorious work in you will faithfully continue the process of maturing you and will put his finishing touches to it until the unveiling of our Lord Jesus Christ! - Philippians 1:6 (The Passion Translation)