Sometimes life feels like it’s crushing you, the pressure is heavy, the breaking seems unfair, and the pain feels endless. But in those very moments, God is not breaking you to destroy you, He’s shaping you to bless you.

Grapes must be crushed to make sweet wine.

Diamonds form under intense pressure.

Olives are pressed to release pure oil.

A seed must break open before new life can grow.

In the same way, God uses our pain to produce something precious. Our trials and hurts aren’t wasted, they are the process by which His glory is revealed in us. This is exactly what the apostles Paul said, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28

When life feels like it’s pressing you down, remember, the pressure has a purpose. Every tear, every setback, every season of breaking, every hurt is preparing you for something beautiful that could only come through surrender. Just as the olive must be pressed for oil, you must sometimes be pressed to see God’s power released in your life.

So don’t give up! What you place in God’s hands, He will transform. Your brokenness is not the end of the story - it’s the beginning of His masterpiece.

Here are some scriptural lessons:

Pain has purpose: God uses hardship to refine your faith. (1 Peter 1:7)

Brokenness leads to growth: The seed cannot bear fruit until it’s planted and broken. (John 12:24)

God works in the pressure: Pressure reveals power, and God’s strength is made perfect in weakness. (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Nothing is wasted: What feels like loss is often God’s preparation for blessing. (James 1:3-4)

Surrender brings strength: When you give it all to Him, He turns your pain into purpose. (Psalm 34:18)

So there is encouragement for us! We may not see it now, but one day we’ll look back and realize: every crushing, every pressing, every breaking, every hurt was God working something beautiful in us. So hold on – our pain in God’s hands becomes power in His purpose!

I’d like to close with a prayer for us, “O God, in our moments of pain and breaking, help us to remember You are there to shape us and bless us. Remind us, Lord, that every tear, every setback, every season of hardship and every hurt, has purpose in Your hands.

Just as grapes must be crushed to make sweet wine and diamonds form under pressure, let our struggles produce beauty and strength within us. Teach us to surrender our brokenness to You, trusting that what seems like loss is often Your preparation for greater blessing.

Draw us close, comfort us and let Your love be our anchor as we walk this journey of recovery together.”

In Jesus’ Name, Amen!

God bless you,

Janice Delisle