Let Everything that Has Breath Praise the Lord

Yesterday afternoon my kids found one of those little fuzzy caterpillars that you always see in springtime.  They carefully placed it into a jar filled with leaves "just in case he gets hungry" and poked holes in the top for air.  I felt bad for the poor little guy and sure that we would awake in the morning or next few days and find it dead.  To my surprise, instead of a dead caterpillar we found a cocoon!

Hmmm. I didn't really know what to say.  This was not what I expected, but it was a very pleasant surprise! So I prayed, "Lord what are you trying to show me?"  Over the next few hours the Lord tenderly brought to my remembrance the wonderful story of Easter--as He has been doing that a lot lately.  I thought about the disciples and Thomas especially, who did not expect to find the risen Christ but instead expected to find a dead man. We like to think that we would not have wavered in our faith after seeing Jesus walk on water, raise the dead, and heal the blind, crippled, and lame but the truth is we are all just as imperfect as the disciples. What a pleasant surprise when they discovered the Messiah who had overcome the grave!!! 

It would be enough just to worship a Messiah who could overcome death, but our God is not a God who just covers the basics. He goes above and beyond and extends that same power to us! Just a simple faith in The One who did what we could never do on our own, and we too overcome the grave and have eternal life.  Just a simple faith in the power of love, so powerful that the gates of hell could not keep him, and we too share in the joys of heaven.  Just a simple faith in Jesus, the son of God, who appeared to over 5000 after his death and burial, and we are invited into the family of God, creator of the Universe!

Oh but this wonderful God we serve took it even a step further. He invites us, through faith in Jesus, to share in Jesus' death and resurrection. We are invited to surrender our sinful lives to the one who was sinless. Therefore we are spiritually crucified and brought back into new life.

"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." 

Galatians 2:20

AND because we are crucified with Christ, 2 Corinthians 5:17 promises us,

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:  The old has gone, the new is here!" 

Wow. What an amazing God who loves us so very much that He went above and beyond. We have not been refurbished. We are new creations.

Thank you Lord for the sweet reminder of what you did for me. Thank you Lord for reminding me that I am a new creation and that many people who knew me from my pre-Christ life may not recognise me because they remember a caterpillar but will be pleasantly surprised when they see I am now a butterfly.  Thank you Lord for not just saving me, but bringing me into a full and abundant life. I am so very grateful.  This little caterpillar's life gives you glory and praise and so shall mine!

Psalm 148:7,9-10,13

"Praise the LORD from the earth,
you great sea creatures and all ocean depths,

you mountains and all hills,
fruit trees and all cedars,

wild animals and all cattle,
small creatures and flying birds,

Let them praise the name of the LORD,
for his name alone is exalted;
his splendor is above the earth and the heavens.