Pressure Isn’t the Problem
Pressure Isn’t the Problem
I heard my friend and the lead pastor at 412 Tabernacle, John (JP) Smitherman, talk about pressure recently, and it stuck with me. He kept coming back to the same statement over and over again: “Pressure represents a weight of glory we can’t lift without Jesus. He lifts what we can’t.”
That changes the way you see everything.
Because if we’re honest, most of us don’t like pressure. We try to avoid it, pray it away, or complain about it like it’s the worst thing in the world. What if we’ve been looking at it all wrong? What if pressure isn’t the problem? What if pressure is actually the platform God uses to grow you? So let me give you a few things about pressure that I think the Lord is teaching me.
Pressure Reveals What You Were Never Meant to Carry
There is a weight to life that you were never meant to carry by yourself. Responsibilities, expectations, family, ministry, and even the private battles that no one else sees all begin to stack up. The Apostle Paul writes, “For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” (2 Corinthians 4:17,). That means there is a weight of glory coming, and you don’t have the strength to carry it on your own. Pressure exposes that reality. It reminds you that you are not enough and you were never supposed to be. That realization is not meant to discourage you; it’s meant to direct you straight to Jesus.
Jesus Lifts What You Can’t
We love the idea of Jesus as Savior, but we often forget that He is also our sustainer. In Matthew 11:28, Jesus says, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” He doesn’t say to come after you’ve figured everything out or once you’ve managed the pressure on your own. He simply says, “Bring Me the weight.” Think about that...Jesus actually wants you to put the pressure on Him. He can handle it. He can carry it. He’s not overwhelmed by what overwhelms you.
So instead of trying to hold it all together, you can hand it over. The weight you’re feeling was never meant to stay on your shoulders—it was meant to drive you to His.
Pressure is not proof that God has abandoned you; more often, it is evidence that He is drawing you closer. The weight you feel is exactly where His strength shows up the most. As Paul reminds us in 2 Corinthians 12:9, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” The very place where you feel like you’re at your limit is the place where Jesus proves that He is more than enough. I’ve even started praying differently. I once heard Joby Martin say, “Lord, don’t lighten my load, broaden my shoulders.” That changes the prayer. Instead of asking God to remove the pressure, you start asking Him to grow you through it.
Pressure Produces Movement
I’m not sure about you, but at my house there’s always a running “honey-do” list. It’s full of things I fully intend to get done…Eventually. But if I’m being honest, most of those things don’t actually get done until there’s some pressure, like when a birthday party is about to happen at the house or my wife has any kind of planned event. I’m convinced… She might be doing that on purpose just to get me moving. Suddenly, there’s urgency, focus, and action. Why? Because pressure produces movement. Pressure forces us to our knees in prayer. Many of us don’t really pray until there’s pressure. We don’t consistently open God’s Word until there’s pressure. We don’t fully depend on Him until there’s pressure. While we might see that as a weakness, God uses it as part of His process. Pressure has a way of waking us up and pushing us toward the very things we need most.
Pressure Isn’t Punishment — It’s Preparation
We often assume that if life feels hard, something must be wrong. But Scripture teaches the opposite. James 1:2–3 says, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.” Pressure is not pointless. It is producing something in you. It strengthens your faith, deepens your dependence on God, builds endurance, and prepares you for what lies ahead. Growth does not happen without resistance, and strength is never developed without pressure.
The Real Danger
The real danger is not pressure itself, it’s trying to handle pressure without Jesus. Pressure will either push you toward Christ or push you deeper into yourself, and only one of those paths leads to life.
If you try to carry everything on your own, you will eventually burn out, shut down, or give up. But if pressure drives you to Jesus, you begin to experience something different. You find peace in the middle of chaos, strength in the middle of weakness, and purpose in the middle of pain.
So What Do You Do With Pressure?
Instead of running from pressure or wasting it, you can choose to use it. Let pressure push you into God’s Word, drive you to prayer, and remind you of how much you truly need Him. The goal is not to live a pressure-free life. The goal is to live a Christ-dependent life.
So the next time you feel the weight, don’t panic and don’t quit. Look to Jesus. The same Savior who rescued you is the same Savior who will sustain you.
That changes the way you see everything.
Because if we’re honest, most of us don’t like pressure. We try to avoid it, pray it away, or complain about it like it’s the worst thing in the world. What if we’ve been looking at it all wrong? What if pressure isn’t the problem? What if pressure is actually the platform God uses to grow you? So let me give you a few things about pressure that I think the Lord is teaching me.
Pressure Reveals What You Were Never Meant to Carry
There is a weight to life that you were never meant to carry by yourself. Responsibilities, expectations, family, ministry, and even the private battles that no one else sees all begin to stack up. The Apostle Paul writes, “For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” (2 Corinthians 4:17,). That means there is a weight of glory coming, and you don’t have the strength to carry it on your own. Pressure exposes that reality. It reminds you that you are not enough and you were never supposed to be. That realization is not meant to discourage you; it’s meant to direct you straight to Jesus.
Jesus Lifts What You Can’t
We love the idea of Jesus as Savior, but we often forget that He is also our sustainer. In Matthew 11:28, Jesus says, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” He doesn’t say to come after you’ve figured everything out or once you’ve managed the pressure on your own. He simply says, “Bring Me the weight.” Think about that...Jesus actually wants you to put the pressure on Him. He can handle it. He can carry it. He’s not overwhelmed by what overwhelms you.
So instead of trying to hold it all together, you can hand it over. The weight you’re feeling was never meant to stay on your shoulders—it was meant to drive you to His.
Pressure is not proof that God has abandoned you; more often, it is evidence that He is drawing you closer. The weight you feel is exactly where His strength shows up the most. As Paul reminds us in 2 Corinthians 12:9, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” The very place where you feel like you’re at your limit is the place where Jesus proves that He is more than enough. I’ve even started praying differently. I once heard Joby Martin say, “Lord, don’t lighten my load, broaden my shoulders.” That changes the prayer. Instead of asking God to remove the pressure, you start asking Him to grow you through it.
Pressure Produces Movement
I’m not sure about you, but at my house there’s always a running “honey-do” list. It’s full of things I fully intend to get done…Eventually. But if I’m being honest, most of those things don’t actually get done until there’s some pressure, like when a birthday party is about to happen at the house or my wife has any kind of planned event. I’m convinced… She might be doing that on purpose just to get me moving. Suddenly, there’s urgency, focus, and action. Why? Because pressure produces movement. Pressure forces us to our knees in prayer. Many of us don’t really pray until there’s pressure. We don’t consistently open God’s Word until there’s pressure. We don’t fully depend on Him until there’s pressure. While we might see that as a weakness, God uses it as part of His process. Pressure has a way of waking us up and pushing us toward the very things we need most.
Pressure Isn’t Punishment — It’s Preparation
We often assume that if life feels hard, something must be wrong. But Scripture teaches the opposite. James 1:2–3 says, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.” Pressure is not pointless. It is producing something in you. It strengthens your faith, deepens your dependence on God, builds endurance, and prepares you for what lies ahead. Growth does not happen without resistance, and strength is never developed without pressure.
The Real Danger
The real danger is not pressure itself, it’s trying to handle pressure without Jesus. Pressure will either push you toward Christ or push you deeper into yourself, and only one of those paths leads to life.
If you try to carry everything on your own, you will eventually burn out, shut down, or give up. But if pressure drives you to Jesus, you begin to experience something different. You find peace in the middle of chaos, strength in the middle of weakness, and purpose in the middle of pain.
So What Do You Do With Pressure?
Instead of running from pressure or wasting it, you can choose to use it. Let pressure push you into God’s Word, drive you to prayer, and remind you of how much you truly need Him. The goal is not to live a pressure-free life. The goal is to live a Christ-dependent life.
So the next time you feel the weight, don’t panic and don’t quit. Look to Jesus. The same Savior who rescued you is the same Savior who will sustain you.
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