Getting the Squeeze

We don’t mean to word vomit all over our friends and overshare with all we are going through, but it’s what we do. Pace yourself though or you will run out of friends if that is all you do! A couple of weeks ago, a friend called to go to dinner. We haven’t seen each other in a while so before arriving at the restaurant I told myself to keep everything simple, stay strong, and don’t be needy. Welp, that didn’t happen… We started talking and l completely forgot about the instructions I gave myself. She got a mouthful of everything going on in my life. It wasn’t all about me, she shared what was going on in her life as well. It couldn’t have been more of what I needed if I had planned it myself. Maybe God knew what He was doing. She said something that forever changed me… not everything you are going through is an attack… sometimes it’s God squeezing you. Have you felt maxed out beyond your capacity to handle, stretched beyond what you feel able to endure any longer? Me too! It’s easy to blame my behavior and my heart’s responses on the tough circumstances I find myself in.

Let’s discuss the squeezing process. I’m not talking about the squeeze of an affectionate hug but instead, let’s think about what happens to an orange when it is squeezed to make orange juice. First, you roll the orange around on a counter while pressing on it to get the juices flowing. Then you cut the orange in half. The last step is to place the orange on the juicer while pressing down with all your might and twisting the orange until all the juice is out. Then yummy orange juice to drink! That’s quite a process to go through. Can you imagine what it takes for God to squeeze us into the person He is calling us to be? The pressing, the squeezing, maybe even in the cut down the middle?! Sounds painful, doesn’t it? This is why we immediately say “it’s an attack of the enemy”.

God has been showing me how the squeezing is molding me and making me into His masterpiece. It removes things that have been locked inside me for a long time. This doesn’t mean these things are wrong or sinful (but could be), but things that will hold me back from growing the seeds of greatness He planted inside me. It means that I have become apathetic or comfortable where I am. It means that I am too concerned with what others think and continually compare myself without considering what He says about me. I am going through a lot of transition in my life. This is a new season for me again! Could it please just stop changing already? Nope. Because I won’t be that person if it does.

What came out of my heart? Insecurity in certain friendships, anxiety as I engage the reality of working for hubby and building a business as well as a ministry together, and doubts about whether God will provide for me even though He always has. Oh, and that’s not all! I’ve also felt frustration because if I’m honest, it would be nice if it was an easier road to walk than the one God has chosen for me. At times, all of this squeezing has led to feeling completely overwhelmed. Although my circumstances may be different than yours, when we get down to heart issues, we are more alike than different.

What I am learning is that if I am to expand my faith, I must be willing to be squeezed to get the juices flowing from the pressure. Once I allow the juices to flow, He can use me in ways I never realized. This entire squeezing process is to get Him to flow through me to help others.

When you feel squeezed with fearful thoughts threatening to paralyze you it’s not from God. Maybe you’re feeling like Moses in Exodus 4:13 when he asked God to please send someone else to do the job. Or perhaps you’re like Jonah, and you want to run away from what God’s called you to do. These things can be painful beyond words, but the truth is, being squeezed by life can humble us in Him. God builds a redemptive bridge into the lives of others from our challenging circumstances.

You need to hear this: being squeezed isn’t an indication that God is rejecting or abandoning you. In His sovereignty and love, God is refining us. And the beauty is that in the middle of this refining squeeze, God is tender and gentle to us, even though it may not feel like it. Isaiah 42:3 says, “A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.” He loves us enough to allow hard circumstances to sanctify us and make us more like Jesus. But as he does so, he brings comfort and encouragement to our weak and oppressed hearts.

Many things in our lives are out of our control, however, we can control how we respond to them. We are responsible for what we allow in our lives through television, radio, friends, etc. Are we allowing circumstances to control us or are we turning to Him through the process to see where we can be more like Him? It has given me such a peace knowing that so much of what I was going through was not from Him or the enemy but just life. It was God letting me know it is time to move on to the next chapter and with His squeezing, the juice will flow.