Rush

There is something to be said about waiting for something. I can admit that when I rush things, things don’t happen the way they should. They feel rushed. They feel half-hearted. If we are completely honest with ourselves, some of us like the rush. We like the beat of our heart, We like the pressure. We like the thrill. Truth is…There are things in life that shouldn’t be rushed. You wouldn’t rush baking a cake. It requires time. There are things in your life that just require more time. What things in your life feel rushed? What are you doing out of your own strength? Be patient. Wait for it, Everything in due time and season. Don’t rush it.

Too Much

1 Corinthians 10:13- There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

I think we have all had moments when we have questioned God. We felt like the walls were closing in on us, and it was all getting to be too much. We find ourselves in test after test with no room to breathe. We feel pressured. We get tired. We feel depressed. We feel like giving up, or maybe that’s just me. In these moments, I’ve learned to encourage myself. I remind myself that God will not put more on me than I can bear. I tell myself that God is faithful. I meditate on God’s word. Does it change my immediate situation? No, put it does change me. It helps me to stop operating out of my own strength and rely on God’s. So, when life feels like too much, remember there is always a way of escape.

Pressed

Pressed is a word that is thrown around a lot in our society. “Cold-Pressed” in particular garners a more expensive price tag. Cold-pressed juices and oils retain more of their nutrients and aromas. Whereas, some of these benefits are lost when exposed to heat. Imagine, if we could choose the process by which God gets our gifts out of us. What method would we choose? Would we choose to be pressed?

In order to get olive oil or grape juice, one has to cultivate the vine or tree. We have to be planted in good soil, then we have to grow. Planting is very similar to the burial process. We are covered and left in dark places to grow. Most of us don’t want to be covered, let alone left in a dark place alone under the guise of growth.

Then, after all that we are expected to produce fruit. Not just any fruit, but fruit after our own kind, and good fruit. Then, our good fruit is plucked. Our fruit is taken for us to benefit others. If that isn’t enough, our fruit has to undergo a process of being pressed.

The real treasure of the fruit is on the inside. God is always calling what’s on the inside. How does God get those things he put in us out? Pressure. Uncomfortable situations. People. Tragedy. Loss. Setbacks. Unexpected Encounters. Detours. Divorce. Change. Basically, all the things we try to avoid. We don’t want to be planted. Growth comes with pain. It hurts to bear fruit and though pressure produces, it seems like more than we can bear. Oh, but the end result justifies the process. The juice. The oil. The gift. The lesson. The blessing.