Crushed...for Purpose

When was the last time you considered being crushed? Was it as a result of a friend's action? Was it because you didn't get what you wanted? Or something in between? When we normally think of the word "crushed" it is normally a bad thing. However, let's think of how it can be for the positive. That brings us to this week's quote...

The heart, like the grape, is prone to delivering its harvest in the same moment it appears to be crushed. ~ Roger Houseden

Being crushed can be used for good. Think about these examples: Peanuts become peanut butter. Apples become apple sauce. Tomatoes become tomato sauce. Grapes become grape juice. Rock becomes concrete. Wheat becomes flour. All those secondary products become useful for something else.

As you are crushed in life, how will your heart create a secondary product that is just as good, if not better then what you were prior to being crushed? The unfortunate part is that you don't know what the product will be until it is crushed. We don't welcome the crushing, but we see what we can do after the crushing.

A crushed grape may look ruined, but rather is just being used for another purpose. A crushed spirit may seem ruined, but it can be used for another purpose, maybe greater than before!

This extra quote helps make the point...

"Pressed out of measure and pressed to all length;
Pressed so intensely it seems, beyond strength;
Pressed in the body and pressed in the soul,
Pressed in the mind till the dark surges roll.
Pressure by foes, and a pressure from friends.
Pressure on pressure, till life nearly ends.

"Pressed into knowing no helper but God;
Pressed into loving the staff and the rod.
Pressed into liberty where nothing clings;
Pressed into faith for impossible things.
Pressed into living a life in the Lord,
Pressed into living a Christ-life outpoured."
by L.B. Cowan

Have a fantastic rest of your week!

Reminding myself that I can be crushed and useful...