Years ago we went to San Francisco for vacation. We visited a certain store and watched them make salt water taffy, one of my wife’s favorite candies. They mixed the ingredients and then stretched the taffy across two arms of a machine. Once the machine started, the arms stretched and pulled the taffy for a long time, until it was thoroughly mixed and softened. Then we purchased some taffy and snacked.
It would be silly for the taffy to resist the pulling and stretching. These processes are necessary for the taffy to fulfill its purpose, being the desirable candy that the maker intended. If the candy refused the process, it would stay hard and useless.
Life can make us feel like salt water taffy. We often feel like we are pulled and stretched in so many ways. The process is painful. We can resist the things that God is doing in our lives, but it only leads to more suffering. However if we yield to the process, we grow into the people God intended. It is then that we fulfill the purpose for which He created us.
Psalm 95:6-7 says, “For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.” So when God calls your name today, be patient in the process of pulling and stretching. He has something great in mind for you.
Reluctant Retiree 