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Finding Jesus

If you want to find Jesus, you will find Him in the midst of pressure.

When the four friends attempted to bring their paralytic friend to Jesus for healing, they had to lower the lame man through a hole in the roof because they could not come near Him due to “the press” of the crowd (Mark 2:4 KJV). 

The woman with the issue of blood came to Jesus in a crowded street and touched the hem of His garment. Jesus immediately asked His disciples who had touched Him. “When all denied it, Peter and those with him said, ‘Master, the multitudes throng and press You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’” (Luke 8:45 NKJV).

When Jesus prayed in the garden of Gethsemane on the night of His betrayal, He sweat drops of blood. The pressure was so intense the corpuscles on His forehead broke open. That was some serious pressure! 

The word gethsemane comes from the Hebrew words gat shemanim, which mean “olive press.” An olive press was used to squeeze olives in order to make olive oil. It’s interesting that Jesus’s favorite place to pray in the city of Jerusalem was a place of pressing.

Again, if you want to find Jesus, you can find Him in the press, right in the midst of your season of pressure, trauma, and loss. Consider these biblical passages about resilience in the midst of life’s pressures:

You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. (James 1:3 MSG)

In pressure thou hast enlarged me. (Ps. 4:1 DARBY)

If you fail under pressure, your strength is too small. (Prov. 24:10 NLT)

Yes, it’s true! The strength and power of a living God dwelling inside of you will enable you to withstand the pressures of life. You may be pressed on every side, but if you trust in Jesus you will not be crushed. The pressure of difficult circumstances enlarges faith. You were created for resilience.

Think about what it means to become more like Jesus in the midst of the trouble or rebuilding you are going through.