Finding Grace On The Wings Of A Butterfly

"We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes It has gone through to achieve that beauty."

Maya Angelou

Early one morning while sitting quietly with God, I was astonished by a water-colored canvas, HE was painting with the sun across the sky.

The pinkish-orange ball of light had barely risen over the edge of the trees and it was creating a lovely masterpiece. The dew was still glistening on the tips of the leaves like tiny starburst silhouettes glimmering in the sky. In the distance, the most beautiful brown butterfly fluttered on the breeze.

I sat there in the quietness of solitude watching her dance on the wind while reading my Bible, admiring the beauty of HIS handiwork surrounding me. In that moment, I realized that the chrysalis I had observed previously in the branch of that very tree was no longer hanging there, she was now unwrapped and fluttering by me. Her perfect time had come and in the stillness of waiting, a change took place.

The brown butterfly that had been fluttering by was her and she landed on my great toe to rest and say hello; so, I thought. I watched God’s goodness on display right in front of my eyes through the wings of a butterfly.

Immediately, I felt the presence of God enveloping me like the warmth of a blanket wrapped in a cocoon and the word metamorphosis came to my mind. Metamorphosis is a Greek word meaning transformation or change in shape.

I found grace on the wings of a butterfly and seen mercy as she fluttered by.

Tears of understanding began to stream down my face. I will never forget feeling the presence of God, in that moment, after being in a state of questioning. It was a miraculous testament for increasing my faith. Honestly, I felt like I had been wandering all alone in the wilderness; yet growing through the unchartered terrain in the season I had been walking through.

The wilderness season had been for a purpose, it was a place of transition for transformation. I had just endured a metamorphosis season, a path of pain to uncover my destiny.

The beautiful butterfly landing on my great toe reminded me of the process she too, had endured. Her process, I wouldn't imagine had been a painless journey from being formed as a caterpillar to transforming into this majestically graceful butterfly. Her very existence was a reminder that she had fought for her freedom to have the new life that pain had built.

She was once a caterpillar inside her chrysalis where an enzyme was secreted that literally caused her to dissolve before her transformation ever really began. Her entire being, as she had known it was transitioning to allow for her uncovering- her transformation process. There is no way that could be a painless or easy process to endure yet, she persevered.

Once dissolved and broken down, her cells transformed, and she regrew herself as an entirely new creation. She too had been broken and transformed, but her journey didn't end there; she still had to undergo breaking free from the bondage of her chrysalis. I was mesmerized as I thought about it, she had recently undergone a painful process of transformation and still had to painfully push and force her softened flesh against the hardened shell to break free. But in her fight to freedom, her will to live grew, her strength to endure and persevere grew and through her pain her wings were strengthened to fly.

She and I both had been broken and gracefully learning to fly.

The leaves on the tree began to sway with the breeze of the wind and I heard the Spirit of God whisper,

this was a season of transitioning out from under the bondage of pain, from a caterpillar to butterfly.

"Oh taste and see that the lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!"

Psalm 34:8

As I was admiring her beauty, her proboscis started unfurling closer and closer to my toe as if she was searching me; she was anointing me. I heard the Lord saying taste and see that HE is good; tears were now consistently streaming.

I turned the page of my Bible from the text I had been reading to Psalm 34 and began proclaiming the words written on the page of verses seven and eight "The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him, And delivers them. Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!"

I knew I trusted HIM and somehow, I knew she trusted HIM too.

She landed on my great toe and sat there for what seemed like forever, the moment seemed to stand still. She was testing the sweetness of my nectar as I was a flower in bloom. I wanted to capture the moment because I knew I couldn't explain or even begin to articulate with my words what I had just witnessed. I leaned up to reach for my phone, to video her while she was uncoiling her proboscis and she flew away. HE was encamping about me, HE said that we could trust HIM.

I moved before she was ready for me to move. My curiosity of her performing her work disrupted the process. She was testing the sweetness of my nectar and my rushing her resulted in her moving on before the process was complete.

Just as with God, if we move and try to force the process of our transitioning before our transformation is complete, before HE is done restoring us piece by piece. HE will not finish HIS work in us at that designated time. We are left sitting in a season longer than we would have had to if we would have followed the path of HIS perfect work.

Just as the children of Israel, 40 years in the Wilderness is a long time to pay a price for HIS promise. If only, We could have been still and obedient in the waiting.

HE will complete HIS perfect work within us, and although our transition into our transformation is painful, it is necessary to become the beautiful creation, HE created us to be.

The beautiful brown butterfly was signifying just as HE promised, Change is coming!

Xo,

B. The Girl in the Blue House