Daily Devotion

“It does not matter how great the pressure is. What really matters is where the pressure rests—whether it stands between you and God, or pushes you closer to His heart.”

James Hudson Taylor II · The Taylor Letters and Early Lectures of Holy Light Theological Seminary

Scripture

2 Corinthians 1:8-9 For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead.

Reflection

Paul's desperate situation in Asia, where he was 'utterly burdened beyond strength,' was not a sign of God losing control, but rather His way of curing our pride of self-sufficiency. We often view pressure as an obstacle and an enemy, trying to shake it off by our own strength, only to end up exhausted in the struggle. The words of Reverend James Hudson Taylor II remind us that the true value of pressure lies not in its weight, but in its direction. When the heavy burdens of reality strip away our self-illusions, pressure ceases to be a wall standing between God and us; instead, it becomes a wave that sweeps us into the Father's embrace. The place of utter weakness is precisely where we begin to experience the power of the God who raises the dead.