Over the past couple of months I have noticed some captivating graphics on the covers of the British magazine The Economist. The cover of September 30, 2008 issue featured a whirlpool with banks and financial institutions swirling downwards to oblivion. The caption asked, "What next?"

The October 4th cover, featuring a man looking over the edge of a crumbling cliff, was captioned: "World on the edge." The October 11th cover pictured the entire planet dropping out of space like a stone. The caption was, "Saving the system; the panic, the rescues and a special report on the world economy."

But it was the October 25th cover that really caught my eye. It displayed butterflies flapping their wings in flight (obviously having just emerged from cocoons) as they sought to gain height and go forward. That cover's caption was: "Into the storm, What will happen to the emerging economies?" It was a great graphic that was immensely eye-catching! It visually focused my attention on the immense crisis currently gripping world's economy—one that will try the metal of each of us.

Depicting the transformational life cycle of butterflies caught my particular interest. I can relate more than my financial situation to that graphic.

Butterflies of the same variety mate and produce eggs. The eggs hatch into ugly looking caterpillars that crawl around their habitat munching on leaves.

At a certain point in time each caterpillar spins a cocoon around itself. Then the transformation from caterpillars to adult butterflies begins. When this transformation is complete, beautiful adult butterflies emerge. In their new form they can now fly gracefully, free from their restricted former habitat. Then they mate and the cycle starts all over again.

The special foresight of The Economist's graphic artist is obvious. Our world today is going through a financial metamorphosis, a word borrowed from the Greek language that effectively captures this incredible cycle of change.

But we can look forward to a much more promising change, if only we will pause to consider how it can be made to happen.

The apostle Paul told newly emerging Christians, you can stop conforming to this world and be "transformed" (metamorphoō in Greek) "by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect" (Romans 12:2, New Revised Standard Version).

God wants to transform us by a similar metamorphosis to something truly wonderful and beautiful—reminiscent of the metamorphosis of a caterpillar into a butterfly. If we willingly and sincerely accept His way of life—as taught in the Holy Scriptures (2 Timothy 3:16-17)—He promises to eventually transform our physical bodies into spirit. This is a much more significant change than that of a caterpillar's transformation into a butterfly.

Naturally we don't conform to God's ways. As the apostle Paul explained, "To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God's law—indeed it cannot," (Romans 8:7-8, NRSV).

Changing our normal, self focused ways—which naturally appear so right in our human way of thinking (Proverbs 14:12)—to the ways that are right according to God's word is the initial part of the metamorphosis that God wants to produce in us. Therefore He "commands all men everywhere to repent" (Acts 17:30).

Repentance involves discarding old ways and habits by replacing them with God's revealed way of life. If we respond, He will work in us, through the power of His Spirit, to transform ourbehavior and character. He occasionally will test our commitment with challenging trials, such as financial trials. But at the end of that process, if we remain faithful, we will, become a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17)—a Spirit filled son or daughter of God with proven character and a completely new spiritual body (1 Corinthians 15:51-53; 1 John 3:2-3).

Only time will tell how well the world's economy will emerge from its crisis. The important question is, will we respond to God so we can emerge from this physical life into a beautiful new creation—as transformed sons and daughters of God?