“Living under Pressure, correctly, can produce Peace in the very midst of Tragedy!”
There are two quotes that I find to be excellent illustrations concerning how we should act while under pressure:
1) “The tea kettle does not sing until it gets into hot water.”
2) “The full strength of a tea bag isn’t drawn out until it gets into hot water.”
And I believe it would be safe to say that all of us face pressures in this life. And it is how we respond to pressure that determines whether we mature and grow, both in God and in life, or fall in serving Him and others. Some when facing pressure crack and fall apart. Others permit the pressure to make them grow in maturity and in the Lord, just as a pearl is formed.
The very professional athletes that give us so much pleasure as we follow them are not champions necessarily because they have the best talent. But rather, they play their best when under pressure because they are champions. And on the other hand, we occasionally see very talented athletes who crack repeatedly under pressure. And when we see this, we have discovered that these athletes become known for their failures in big contests rather than for their overall statistics, regardless of how impressive they may be.
So in this instance, we need to learn the lesson of the tea kettle – that when life’s pressures fall heavily upon us, let’s begin to whistle! [Personally, this very tool has been the precise response that has brought me through, time and time again.]
But another incident comes to mind when I think of the horrific events that confronted America and most all of the civilized world, on the morning of September 11, 2001, that left so many in mourning. For it reminds me of Horatio Spafford, who wrote the well-known hymn, “It is Well with My Soul” and the tragedy that birthed the words to that song.
Horatio Spafford, a lawyer and teacher, scheduled a trip to France for he and his family, but was eventually forced to delay his own departure because of business. Instead, he sent his wife and four daughters on to France aboard the Ville du Havre, with plans to join them soon after. The ship however collided with another vessel in the deep waters of the Atlantic and sunk shortly after. All four daughters drowned. Mr. Spafford’s wife, who somehow survived, sent a cablegram with these brief words, “Saved Alone.” Yet Mr. and Mrs. Spafford experienced great peace and strength, knowing that their daughters were in heaven, as they all had been converted to Christianity during a meeting led by the well known evangelist, D. L. Moody.
Horatio later penned the words to “It is Well with My Soul” after that tragedy. And to this day, many quote the words to the first verse, “When peace, like a river, attended my way, When sorrows like sea-billows roll; Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, ‘It is well, it is well with my soul.’ “
The third verse speaks to a peace that goes beyond the temporal tragedy they faced. It is the peace of sin forgiven. Think of these words: “My sin – oh, the bliss of this glorious thought, My sin – not in part, but the whole, Is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more, Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!”
Horatio Spafford’s burden of sin and guilt was an even greater burden to him than the children he had lost at sea. Yet he and his wife could know the peace of God for their grief and for the burden of sin that had been taken care of by the Lord. His heart was calmed by the work of Christ on the cross. Horatio knew the peace that only God could bring, and I would encourage all of the readers to know that His Amazing Grace is available to each of us today, regardless of the panic on Wall Street, or the fear that would try to overtake your heart. Rest in knowing – HE IS IN CONTROL!
