Pressed, Stressed and Still Blessed
Well, if’n that there don’ beat all, Butterbean. You gotta; be ‘a-lettin’ me be ‘a-settin’ the scene real gentle-like with a lil’ ol’ turtle ‘a-easin’ itself onto a sunny rock. Now you be ‘a-picturin’ me ‘a-standin’ by the barn, ‘a-watchin’ them lil’ ol’ Banty chickens ‘a-scatterin’ ‘cause one bossy rooster done woke up in a mean mood. That there’s ‘bout how life gits to feelin’ when the weight of the world done plops itself right on your chest. Mark 14:34 done says, “He told them, ‘My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.’” That verse settled quieter than a deer ‘a-tiptoein’ through morning fog, remindin’ me that even Jesus done walked through moments heavier than a soaked feed sack.
Now, Butterbean, if’n you’ve ever been ‘a-feeelin’ lonely, misunderstood, abandoned, or confused ‘bout God’s will, then you’ve dipped your toes right into Gethsemane. Hebrews 4:15-16 is ‘a-tellin’ us Jesus understands our weaknesses ‘cause He done faced every test we face, yet without sin. When you go to cryin’, He gits it. When you git to achin’, He understands. When your heart’s ‘a-crumblin’ like a biscuit left in the rain, He’s been there, too.
Isaiah 53:3 done calls Him “a man of sorrows.” And Lawd have mercy, that there sorrow done peaked under them there twisted olive trees. Gethsemane literally means “olive press,” and Jesus was ‘a-bein’ pressed from every side. Pressed by sorrow. Pressed by the world’s sin. Pressed by the knowledge of what was ‘a-comin’. Isaiah 53:5 is ‘a-sayin’ He was pierced for our rebellion and crushed for our sins. He could’ve walked away, but instead He bowed His head and said, “Not my will, but Yours be done.”
That there’s the awful, hard truth of salvation. Jesus was crushed so’s we could be ‘a-gittin’ healed. He was pressed so’s we could be ‘a-gittin’ freed. And ‘cause of what He endured, we can call on His name even when our own lives git to feelin’l like a real personal Gethsemane.
Maybe you’re ‘a-standin’ in your own olive press. Maybe you know what you want, but you done sensin’ God ‘a-nudgin’ you toward somethin’ different. Would you be ‘a-sayin’, “Lord, not my will, but Yours be done”? You’ll never regret surrenderin’ to the One who done surrendered everything for you.
Father, when life presses me harder than a goat wedged in a gate, help me trust You. Give me strength to surrender, courage to obey, and peace to rest in Your will. Thank You for Jesus, who understands every sorrow I carry. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Now, goodness gracious, Buttercup, as you be ‘a-goin’ ‘bout your day, remember this. Your Gethsemane moments may be ‘a-squeezin’ you tighter’n a tick on a hound dog, but God’s still ‘a-workin’ somethin’ holy in that pressure. Be ‘a-trustin’ Him. Be ‘a-leanin’ on Him. And be ‘a-lettin’ Him shape your heart till it shines with the same surrender Jesus showed under them ancient olive trees.
With joy,
Gwen
