Issue 1304 – Under Pressure – November 23, 2023
Happy Thanksgiving to our friends south of the border. May God bless you with another year with plenty to be thankful for.
Our world works in part because of stress, tension and pressure. Those words have taken on some very negative connotations over the years, but they needn’t be negative.
Atoms hold together because of the stresses and pressures of the magnetic forces within them. Our galaxy could well collapse if it wasn’t for centrifugal force and gravity.
A nail doesn’t hold anything until it is hammered in place. A screw bites with its threads until it grips strongly enough to keep.
A staple must be bent to hold the paper. A pushpin or tack needs to be pushed into place to grab. A clothespin holds clothing on the line with pressure.
Our daily lives and relationships with others are often described as forces and stresses. We fall in love. We are repulsed by something. We are attracted to someone. We might need a kickstart in the morning. Perhaps we hold on for dear life.
Of course, God is the overriding force that holds things together (sorry, guys, it isn’t duct tape.) That isn’t meant to dismiss God as merely some impersonal deity or force; the God of the Bible is so much more than that.
If God were to withdraw His presence, no amount of force could hold things together. There isn’t enough atomic power, gravity, centrifugal force, nails, screws, bolts, tape and glue in the universe to keep it from collapsing.
The LORD designed us to withstand a certain amount of pressure, tension and stress. He often uses those very things to help mould us into the image of His Son.
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. Romans 5:1-5
He makes it possible for us to turn to Him when the pressures mount. David understood this truth.
For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God. Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. Psalm 62:5-8
Are you facing the struggles of life trying to hold it together with homemade or manmade tools? Are you relying on your strength?
Give it to God; he knows how to carry you through and make the most of it.
May your refuge be in the Lord.
Be blessed
Hallelu Yah / Praise God
Kevin
Gleanings From The Word
Experience an extraordinary God in ordinary life.
Soli Deo Gloria (For the glory of God alone)
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All contents, “Gleanings From The Word” and “Experience an Extraordinary God in Ordinary Life,” are © 2001, 2023 KF “Kevin” Corbin Gleanings From The Word.
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is from the English Standard Version (ESV).
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