Think about how the following relates to counseling and clients' changes ....

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly.  One day a small opening appeared.  He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body  through that little hole.

Then it seemed to stop making any progress.  It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could, and it could go no further.

So the man decided to help the butterfly.  He took a pair of scissors and snipped  off the remaining bit of the  cocoon.  The butterfly then emerged easily.

But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings.

The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and  expand to be able to  support  the body, which would contract in time.

Neither happened!  In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings.  It never was able to fly.

What the man, in his kindness and haste, did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were God's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our lives.  If God allowed us to go through our lives without  any  obstacles, it would cripple us.

We would not be as strong as what we could have been.  We could never fly!

Just as the butterfly becomes a beautiful creature free to soar and fly, through counseling clients are empowered to become beautiful, unique creatures that are free to grow.  For both the butterfly and the client, the struggle is often difficult.  However, through the butterfly's struggle, its wings are strengthened enabling it to break free and fly.  So it is with clients - through each one's individual struggle, they gain strength to make choices and fly free.  We are blessed to be part of that struggle!