Misapplied Kindness

By Frank Williams

July 27, 2026

2 Corinthians 12:9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. When a small opening appeared, he watched as it tried to squeeze through the tiny hole. Then it stopped, as though exhausted. The man snipped the hole bigger, and the butterfly emerged easily.

The man expected it to fly away, but it had a swollen body and shriveled wings. It simply crawled around until it died.

This is an example of misapplied kindness. The struggle required by the butterfly to get through the tiny hole was God’s way of forcing the fluid from the body into the wings so that it could fly as soon as it emerged from the cocoon. God is loving and wise to allow us to struggle through hard and challenging times.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our lives. The Lord designs them to strengthen our wings. Going through life with no obstacles would cripple us. Without struggles we will not be as strong for the Lord as we could have been, and we would never learn to fly.  

Parents sometimes err in this area by not wanting their children to endure the difficulties they had as a child. The Bible teaches parents to prepare their children, but it does not teach that we can protect them from every hard situation. We often over-protect them. Cuts, bruises, and skint knees may just be part of God’s method in preparing them to fly. We can teach them that life is sometimes difficult and that struggles are teachers.

Go ahead and let Johnny climb that tree!

Reflection—When we listen, struggles can teach us to lean on Christ and to depend on Him for guidance and strength.