MARCH 7, 2013
On
The Fringe
Read: Philippians 4:10-20
God shall supply all
your need according to His riches in glory by
Christ Jesus. —Philippians 4:19
When
butterflies hatch at Frederik Meijer Gardens in Grand Rapids,
Michigan, they do
so in an indoor tropical paradise perfectly suited to
meet their every need.
The temperature is perfect. The humidity is
perfect. The food is a perfect
balance of calories and nutrition to keep
them healthy. No need to go
elsewhere. Yet some butterflies see the
bright blue sky outside the
conservatory and spend their days fluttering
near the glass ceiling far away
from the plentiful food supply.
I
want to say to those butterflies, “Don’t you know everything you need
is
inside? The outside is cold and harsh, and you will die within minutes if
you
get what you are longing to have.”
I
wonder if that is the message God has for me. So I ask myself, Do I look
longingly at things that would harm me? Do I use my energy to gain what I
don’t
need and shouldn’t have? Do I ignore God’s plentiful provision because
I
imagine that something just beyond my reach is better? Do I spend my time
on
the fringes of faith?
God
supplies all our needs from His riches (Phil. 4:19). So instead of striving
for
what we don’t have, may we open our hearts to gratefully receive everything
we’ve already been given by Him.
All that I want is in Jesus;
He satisfies, joy He supplies;
Life would be worthless without Him,
All things in Jesus I find. —Loes
Our needs will never exhaust God’s supply.
Source:
Our Daily Bread 2012
