This word is submitted by Lin Lee (lin@lee-family.me.uk)

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                               Pressure

I was praying about the pressures I was under, asking the Lord to take some
of them away.  He gave me a picture of a diamond, uncut, but obviously
beautiful within, and He asked me how a diamond is formed.

Carbon principally takes two forms: it either forms layers, like coal or
graphite; or when subjected to extreme pressure and heat, it forms a 
crystalline structure - diamond.  Diamond is the hardest substance known to 
man, yet a blow in the wrong place can shatter the stone, turning it to 
dust. If this raw diamond is placed in the hands of an expert jeweler, 
however, he will cut and polish it with extreme skill and care to bring 
out the greatest beauty within.  When it is completed it will shine with 
an incredible brilliance and beauty.

We often sing "Make me like a precious stone, crystal clear and finely
honed" being prepared for God to gently cut and polish us.  Yet if you take 
a lump of coal and carefully cut and polish it, shaping it like a diamond, 
you will still only have a prettily cut lump of dirty, black coal.  
Sometimes it takes the pressures of life to transform us into the rough
diamonds that God can cut and polish to truly reflect His beauty.  

God knows our limits and He will not allow us to be tested or tempted beyond
what we can endure. Sometimes it feels like He has taken us way beyond what
we can handle; yet if we focus on Him, lean on Him and trust Him
absolutely, He will strengthen us.

To Him we are as precious as the most beautiful diamonds, and He wants to
bring out the greatest beauty in us.