Growing Pains

“For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” 2 Corinthians 4:17 

There is a true story about a man and his wife who lived in the foothills of California. They lived in a valley full of mushrooms and, one day, went out and picked some and called all their neighbors over to have a mushroom-themed dinner. All their friends in the neighborhood came, three or four couples. They ate a delicious meal of casseroles, mushroom soups, and all kinds of stuff. At the end of the meal, they scraped the leftovers from some of the plates and gave them to their cat. Later, someone noticed the cat lying down, foaming at the mouth and barely breathing. They called the vet, and he said, “I'm afraid that the cat has been poisoned. What you thought was mushrooms was toadstool. You and all of your guests need to get to the emergency room immediately and ask them to pump out your stomach. You could all die.” So they all went to the emergency room and got their stomachs pumped. Five hours later, they came back home and went to check on the cat. They opened the kitchen door, and the cat was sitting there with a litter of six kittens!

The cat wasn't experiencing death pains; it was experiencing birth pains. Don’t judge your situation too quickly. Sometimes, you just don't understand that where you are and what you are going through is not death pain; it’s birth pain. You are right where God wants you. And right where you are, God is there. 

Professionals built the Titanic, and it sank. Amateurs built Noah's Ark, which went through the most severe storm the world has ever seen and stayed afloat. The only difference was who they were getting their building instructions from. Stop giving up so quickly. If God has told you to do something, stand your ground and be encouraged that “by His spirit,” He is leading you to a glorious destiny.

So many are ready to quit at the first sign of resistance. But problems raise up innovators and adversity creates overcomers. You grow through pain and obstacles. 

Not a lot is said about Matthias in the Bible other than he was chosen to replace Judas. However, the Bible does say that he was nominated because he was one of the ones with Jesus from the beginning. He stood firm and didn’t quit when Jesus was crucified. His legacy was one of faithfulness, and his name will be written on one of the twelve foundations of Heaven. Your passport to greatness is being faithful with what you’ve been given in the place where God has placed you. That may seem insignificant to you, but it is huge in God’s eyes.

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