The Broken Butterfly

It is estimated that there are 20,000 species of butterflies in the world.  Can you imagine the creative display of winged colors and designs to exhibit on such a large scale?  They stimulate the imagination of the human mind to fashion their own creations of butterflies through stories, paintings, jewelry, pottery, acrylic design; just to name a few.  Here are a few photos of butterfly wings which show off such intricate glory in their natural state.   Through the eye of the camera lens, many thanks to the unknown photographers who were able to capture such beauty to share with the rest of the world.

One of the most incredible facts about butterflies is the way they change from crawling caterpillars into winged beauties. There are four steps in becoming a butterfly: egg, caterpillar, pupa, and adult. This process is called metamorphosis, which comes from the Latin words for "changing shape."

I am amazed at the varieties of butterflies, which exist in so many countries of the world, each having a dazzling spectrum of colored patterns in their wings.  We are intrigued by their beauty and hardly consider them an insect. They remind me of colors which you see in stained glass, artistically orchestrated in a motif symphony of brilliance.  The photo below is of a butterfly called the "stained glass butterfly".

Butterflies can be rather difficult to photograph as they flutter through the air, doing their graceful wing dance until they decide to light upon a bush, a leaf, or a flower.   I spotted one such butterfly landing on a tree leaf just long enough for me to take a couple of shots with my camera.  As I zoomed in for a closer view, I discovered the butterfly had broken wings; parts and pieces were missing as you can see from the photo below.  The butterfly escaped my scrutiny and flitted away, oblivious to the fact that his wings were not whole. He took to the air and continued his graceful wing dance to find another place to rest or search for butterfly food, deliciously found in flower nectar or tree sap.   As you can see, compared to the butterflies in the photos above, this one is not whole as the others but still beautiful in design and able to fly, doing what butterflies do.    

I use this illustration to talk about brokenness, which affects humanity.  We live in a broken world and as a result, each human being has experienced brokenness that could keep our inner wings crippled and stunted in life.  However, if we look at the butterfly, which is symbolic of resurrection and renewal,  the possibility arises that we are able to emerge out of such brokenness into beauty and power.  It is about transformation and new life.  Our Lord is in the business of renewal, which is a perpetual force available to us as we live in the shadow of His wings. 

Psalms 36:7 states "God, your love is so precious!  You protect people in the shadow of your wings".  In light of that scripture, our Father of Lights is our wholeness... He covers our damaged wings in His completeness and fills in the broken places, enabling us to fly and continue on in our journey through life.

The worship band, Hillsong United, have lyrics to the song, "Shadow of His Wings", which gives spiritual perspective in the changeless assurance of God's covering over our brokenness into His wholeness.

My spirit rests in You

You're all I know

Embrace and touch me

Like a child.

I'm safe in You

 You're my shelter through it all

You're my refuge and my strength

Lord I hide in the shadow of Your wings.

 My Lord, You're faithful

You supply all good things

You know completely

All my thoughts
My deepest needs.

Dearest Father of Lights, as Creator and Guide, may You restore and renew what You have created and keep safe what You have restored and renewed.   This beautiful film clip of a butterfly emerging from a cocoon is a witness to God's creativity in nature and a reminder that nothing is beyond His redemption of wholeness. 

The above video presentation is by Lua, wonderfully expressed to the instrumental of "Shadow of His Wings".  I hope that you will take time out to watch this extraordinary visual imaging.  
You can also link to it at:   
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96TJpxI44gE


Join me next Monday at the Turn-Up Patch....