Pressure Cooker
Thesis: Life is filled with pressure cooker moments that could lead to an explosion. So it is imperative that we learn how to manage the pressure cooker moments in life.
Video Illustration: From Back stage Patty- She talks about how she is under tremendous pressure.
Introduction:
Today I want to talk about the pressure cooker times we face in life. So I want to compare these times to a pressure cooker.
To understand how a pressure cooker works, you need to know just a little about physics. Simply put, water boils at 212o Fahrenheit. At this point, no matter how long you continue to boil, it always stays the same temperature. As the water evaporates and becomes steam it is also the same temperature, 212o F.
The only way to make the steam hotter (and/or to boil the water at a higher temperature) is to put the system under pressure. This is what a pressure cooker does. If we fit an absolutely tight cover to the pan so no steam can escape while we continue to add heat, both the pressure and temperature inside the vessel will rise. The steam and water will both increase in temperature and pressure, and each fluid will be at the same temperature and pressure as the other…
Pressure cookers are especially designed cookware of aluminum or stainless steel. All models have a lock-on lid and a vent or pressure relief valve. Information from http://missvickie.com/workshop/howdoesit.html
It’s important to understand that if a pressure cooker’s pressure relief valve fails to release the built up pressure within the cooker could explode causing serious damage. So it becomes important in cooking and in life that we understand how to manage the pressure that mounts with going through these pressure cooker times. We must learn what to do and how to release the pressure when it comes to pressure cooker periods in life.
Today in our society we have many people on any given day going through and extremely pressure cooker time. People are under tremendous stress, and under tremendous pressure to do so many different things. We have people today suffering from nervous breakdowns, suicide, road rage, irrational thinking processes, drug addiction, alcohol addictions that have led many to get to the point of exploding because they have not learned to release the pressures that have built up in their lives. But in the book of Proverbs we have a passage of Scripture which sheds wisdom on how we should deal with pressure and how to deal with relationships that get pressurized by the things of life.
Here are just a few things that create pressure cooker situations:
Crunched for time
Stress filled jobs
No quiet time in life
No days of rest
Conflicts in relationships
Strife in relationships
Lies
Financial debt
Sinful lifestyle
Marriage relationships
Family relationships
Church relationships
Over commitment
Legalism
Poor decision making
Scripture: Proverbs 17 has select verses that will teach us how to relieve and manage the pressures of life during the pressure cooker times.
Proverbs 17:1 (NIV)
Better a dry crust with peace and quiet than a house full of feasting, with strife.
Proverbs 17:9 (NIV)
He who covers over an offense promotes love, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends.
Proverbs 17:17 (NIV)
A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.
Proverbs 17: 13
If a man pays back evil for good, evil will never leave his house.
Proverbs 17:14
Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam; so drop the matter before a dispute breaks out.
Proverbs 17:19
He who loves a quarrel loves sin; he who builds a high gate invites destruction.
Proverbs 17:20 (NIV)
A man of perverse heart does not prosper; he whose tongue is deceitful falls into trouble.
Proverbs 17:27 (NIV)
A man of knowledge uses words with restraint, and a man of understanding is even-tempered.
Proverbs 17:28
Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue.
T.S. – Let’s look at some ways to manage the pressure cooker times of life.
I. Having a house filled with peace and quiet helps manage the pressure cooker moments in life (Proverbs 17:1).
a. Scripture comparison about the blessing of a house of peace and quiet:
i. Proverbs 17:1 (NASB) “Better is a dry morsel and quietness with it than a house full of feasting with strife.”
ii. Proverbs 17:1 (NIV) “Better a dry crust with peace and quiet than a house full of feasting, with strife.”
iii. Proverbs 17:1 (Message) “A meal of bread and water in contented peace is better than a banquet spiced with quarrels.”
iv. Rom. 12:18 “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”
v. Rom. 14:19 “Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.”
b. To relieve the pressure out of life it is imperative from our verse that we create a place that is filled with peace and quietness of spirit were we can retreat.
c. The Scriptures above do speak to the modern way of life and thinking today.
i. We have lost peace and contentment in life because of pressure of the times.
1. We think we cannot turn off our cell phones or e-mail or msn messenger.
2. We think we cannot relax because we are to busy and yet it’s when your too busy that you need to relax.
3. We have beepers and phones that constantly steal our time of peace and contentment.
4. We here people complaining that that they never have a moment of peace and tranquility. But they refuse to make the adjustments necessary to find those tranquil moments in life.
ii. I have sat and pondered this verse in Proverbs the last couple of days and I believe it is speaking to each of us today.
1. I hear of so many people who live in strife because they are so consumed with doing more and being so busy that there is no break in life.
2. They are so busy and trapped in the whirlwind of business and stress that they are heading right for a pressure cooker explosion in their lives.
3. They do not rest as the Lord commanded in Scripture and in turn their lives are headed for a pressure cooker explosion.
iii. I did read this quote from Steve Shepherd which said, “To have a stress-free day, take a night job.”
1. Truth is life is filled with pressure and stress and it must be managed with wisdom from above.
a. We must understand that if we do not manage life’s pressure moments well then it will cause us to explode.
d. This verse tells me to understand that a life filled with the simple things of life brings peace and tranquility to a soul.
i. Video Illustration – Cutting back – A couple talks about how they have chosen to simplify their life.
ii. Our society has a defective mindset that says, “Peace, joy and contentment comes from great parties and by having a lot of stuff.”
1. We honestly believe places like bars are going to help reduce our stressed filled lives.
2. "The saloon is a liar. It promises good cheer and sends sorrow. It promises prosperity and sends adversity. It promises happiness and sends misery.... It is God’s worst enemy and the devil’s best friend."
-Billy Sunday
3. So many people today have fallen prey to this lifestyle and the result is it just brings strife, fights, fits of rage, anger out bursts, stress, unfulfilled expectations, insecurity, and financial debt.
a. This mindset uses alcohol and drugs to deal with their stress and it compounds the pressure cooker moments down the road.
b. This mindset brings strife, tension and quarrels to relationships as the drug becomes the controller in the individual’s life.
c. Think about this for a moment how many families have you heard of that get together for the holiday parties and they end in strife filled moments.
i. We get in quarrels over some ones reckless words.
ii. We get into a confrontation over some ones attitude toward us or others in the family.
iii. We bring up past issues and end up in fights and arguments.
4. I have experienced these strife filled feasts and I agree with the writer of Proverbs that I would rather have stayed home and ate a sandwich then been caught up in a firestorm filled holiday party.
a. I have experienced relatives literally getting into fist fights at holiday feasts.
b. I have watched people in my family rip and tear up another family member at family feasts because of insensitivity.
c. Truth is my counseling load increases after major holidays because the inevitable occurs families blow up against each other and the celebration turns sour and causes deep rooted wounds in individuals lives.
iii. So instead of living a life and being content with less we go out and do too much and therefore stress ourselves out even more.
1. We chase after things that do not bring happiness or contentment and end up exploding like a pressure cooker with no regulator!
e. So how do we create a place filled with contentment and peace?
i. I believe verse one tells us to be contentment with the simple things in life and not fall into the American consumerism mindset of more is better, charge it, buy the latest and greatest thing and you will be happy.
1. It’s all fleeting and not the way of peace and tranquility.
ii. Understand that peace and contentment does not come from parties but from having a personal relationship with Jesus!
1. Parties without mind altering drugs are good social events but they will not bring peace and contentment in life.
a. Ephesians 2:14-22: 14For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, 16and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. 17He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. 18For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.19Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, 20built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.
T.S. – We all need to create a home filled with peace and contentment because this environment will help us to manage the pressure cooker times in life. We also can better manage pressure cooker times in life by developing strong friendships that are filled with forgiveness and grace.
II. Having friends and families that know the power of forgiveness help us manage the pressure cooker times of life.
a. To help you manage the pressures cooker times in life make sure you have friendships and a family which is deeply rooted in forgiveness and mercy (Proverbs 17: 9, 17).
b. Scripture Comparison:
i. Proverbs 17:9 (Message) “Overlook an offense and bond a friendship; fasten on to a slight and—goodbye, friend!”
ii. Proverbs 17:9 (NIV) “He who covers over an offense promotes love, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends.”
iii. Proverbs 17:17 (Message) “Friends love through all kinds of weather, and families stick together in all kinds of trouble.”
iv. Proverbs 17:17 (NIV) “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.”
c. A real friend loves you in the good times and in pressure filled times.
i. A real friend loves at all times.
ii. A real friend is willing to go the extra mile in the pressure cooker times of life.
iii. They do not write you off when the relationship has a snag or a disagreement.
iv. Real friendship seeks the good in others and learns to overlook the mistakes of the other person.
v. Real friendship desires good of another person not evil
vi. Real friendship is willing to forgive and forget
1. Matthew 6:14, 15: 14For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
2. This story comes from Why Can’t You Forgive by Jeremy Houck sermoncentral.com:
a. It was April 19th 1995 that we suffered the atrocity of the Oklahoma City Bombing. As I was thinking about our sermon today I ran across a story from that event that I would like to share with you today.
Bud Welch lost his 23-year old daughter, Julie, in the blast that destroyed the Murrah Building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people in all. In a story entitled, "Where Healing Begins" from a 1999 edition of Guideposts Magazine, he recounts the extraordinary personal journey to forgiveness that began for him on April 19, 1995. "From the moment I learned it was a bomb," Bud writes, "I survived on hate." His anger was focused on Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols, and like so many others, Bud wished for their speedy conviction and execution. When he saw McVeigh’s father on television a few months after the bombing, however, Bud’s emotions began to shift for the first time. He remembers thinking to himself, "this man has lost a child, too."
A second turning point in Bud’s journey came when he revisited the site of his daughter’s death in January 1996. Bud spotted an elm tree near the place where Julie had always parked her car. Despite damage from the blast, the tree had survived and even sprouted new branches. "The thought that came to me then seemed to have nothing to do with new life," he writes. "It was the sudden, certain knowledge that McVeigh’s execution would not end my pain." Bud’s advocacy of the death penalty for McVeigh ended soon after, and not without drawing notice. He began receiving invitations to speak about his evolving feelings, and one invitation arrived from Buffalo the home of McVeigh’s father. Bud knew it was time to meet.
On September 5, 1998, Bud Welch found himself in the home of Bill McVeigh, a "blue collar Joe" just like him. He also met Bill’s daughter, Jennifer, who reminded Bud of Julie’s friends. "We can’t change the past," Bud told Bill and Jennifer, "but we have a choice about the future."
b. Mark 11:25-26
"And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone; so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your transgressions. "But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father who is in heaven forgive your transgressions."
3. Contributor to sermoncentral.com: Jeremy Houck
a. What Forgiveness Is?
The first stage of forgiveness is the decision not to try to inflict an equal amount of pain on everyone who has caused hurt.
When I forgive you, I give up the right to hurt you back. Even though you may hurt me deliberately, personally, and deeply, I suspend the law of vengeance. I refrain from the instinctive response of retaliation. I don’t act on or indulge my desire to see you squirm. When I forgive you, I set you free from the little prison I have placed in my mind for holding you captive.
Forgiveness begins when we give up the quest to get even. This is difficult, because getting even is the natural obsession of the wounded soul.
b. Our Lord tells us that we really have no choice in this act of forgiveness. He makes it plain that we are to forgive.
i. We are to commit to do the right action and do the good deed of forgiveness.
ii. So we chose the path of forgiveness and then it is up to the other person to decide to repay good with good or good with evil.
iii. If they do choose to return evil then there is a promise here in Proverbs as to what will happen to their lives.
1. A person who pays back evil for good will always be engrossed in the lifestyle of evil (Proverbs 17: 13)
2. Scripture Comparison:
a. Proverbs 17: 13 (NIV) “If a man pays back evil for good, evil will never leave his house.”
b. Proverbs 17:13 (Message) “Those who return evil for good will meet their own evil returning.”
iv. When we decide to have friendships and family members that are driven and controlled by forgiveness then there develops a deeper bond of attachment with each other and with the Lord Himself.
1. There love is rooted in grounded in the relationship no matter what befalls the relationship. They seek to forgive so as to facilitate a healing and growing deeper in their relationship.
d. The question is do you want to release the pressure out of your cooker? So if you do then you need to forgive others.
i. This includes friends and family members.
T.S. – To manage the pressure cooker times in life we must learn to develop strong relationships filled with forgiveness and mercy for one another. A caring friend and caring family member can help us from exploding in the pressure cooker situations in life.
III. Having the determination to refuse to be the one who explodes in the pressure moments of life helps us manage the pressure cooker (Proverbs 17:14, 19).
a. We must make sure that we are not the instigators of strife and quarrels in our pressure cooker times of life.
i. Sometimes we are our own worse enemies when in comes to developing a place of peace and contentment in our lives.
ii. We actually get under pressure and then blow up at others and create more pressure and more trouble.
b. Scripture Comparison:
i. Proverbs 17:14 (NIV) “Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam; so drop the matter before a dispute breaks out.”
ii. Proverbs 17:14 (Message) “The start of a quarrel is like a leak in a dam, so stop it before it bursts.”
1. Many of us if we desire to have a house filled with peace and tranquility need to stop busting open the dams of resentment and anger toward others.
iii. Proverbs 17:19 (NIV) “He who loves a quarrel loves sin; he who builds a high gate invites destruction.”
iv. Proverbs 17:19 (Message) “The person who courts sin, marries trouble; build a wall, invite a burglar.”
1. We also need to quit building walls around our relationships to keep others out and keep our precious gifts to ourselves. This only invites problems and thieves to break in and steal what we have decided to withhold from others.
c. We all need to manage our relationships better by communicating with each other with respect and with empathy.
i. I have counseled too many people who think that relationships are all about who wins the arguments or who gets in the last word.
ii. The modern way of thinking and living is creating so much pressure in people’s lives that they are starting to snap and live lives filled with anger and resentment.
1. C. Leslie Charles says that the American Psyche is headed for a pressure cooker explosion because she sees a society that is getting angrier and angrier and more self-centered every day. She says many have bought into the belief of the “The Cranky Code” of conduct:
a. I am entitled to what I want when I want it.
b. My time is important and I should not have to be inconvenienced by others.
c. I have the right to be impatient or rude when other people are behaving stupidly.
d. I am entitled to special privileges because I am who I am.
e. I’m a taxpayer; I own part of this road and I have the right to drive as fast as I want.
f. I not only have the right to pursue happiness, I deserve to be happy and I’ll do whatever it takes to achieve it.
g. I’m entitled to cheat a little bit in order to get ahead. If I don’t take advantage someone else will, and then they’ll be a step ahead of me.
h. I work extra hard but don’t get paid for it so I’m justified in helping myself to a few “souvenirs” from my office to offset what I am rightly owed.
i. I’m too busy to mince around with false politeness and should be able to tell people exactly what I think without having to worry about their feelings.
j. I must be more in the know than everyone else so I can stay one up on them; otherwise they may take advantage of me.
k. I deserve the newest, the biggest, the best, and the most. It’s my right.
l. I’m going to die one day so I may as well get as much as I can right now.
m. So what if I’m rude-I never have to see this person again, so what difference does it make?
n. My opinions and views are more valid than anyone else’s.
o. My emergencies take precedence over anyone else’s emergency.
p. The world is unfair and opportunities are limited, so I may as well get all I can while I can, regardless of who or what stands in my way.
i. She adds, “Though clearly non-Christian in origin, these belief statements can honestly reflect the flesh patterns of believers as well-though we may be very reluctant to admit it” (178, 179 Getting, Anger Under Control)
2. I agree with her observations that we are living in a Mad, Mad world and it’s headed for an explosion.
d. So many people today try to deal with pressure by unleashing their wrath onto others and in turn create more problems and more pressure into their lives.
i. Redford and Virginia Williams, in their book Anger Kills , adapted the work of Friedman and Rosenman to the problem of anger. In their research, they show how those with a hostile personality are more prone to coronary heart disease” (26, Getting Anger Under Control, Anderson).
ii. According to Anderson he says, “Anger- Is a matter of life or death!”
1. Anderson states, “Anger: an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured” (1).
a. He speaks about how deadly it is and the necessity to make sure it is kept under control.
e. A person who likes to quarrel likes to heap a pile of problems onto a relationship.
i. They like to open up the flood gates and saturate the other person with their toxic water.
1. This breaking of the dam causes havoc and destruction in a relationship.
2. The truth is anger is a choice and being venomous with our words is allowing our flesh to rule our lives.
ii. “Speak when you’re angry — and you’ll make the best speech you’ll ever regret” (from Steve Shepherd).
f. He that loves to start quarrels and controversies loves to roll in sin.
i. A person who is always at the center of problems is a person who loves to be involved in sin.
ii. I have noticed that some people just always seem to be in the middle of conflict. It’s as if they love to role in the sin of conflict.
g. He that builds a wall in front of them and refuses to deal with the problems of their relationship in life is heading for destruction.
i. Our Proverbs writer reminds us that we cannot build a wall around us we do have to interact with others so isolation is not the answer the answer in dealing with pressure is to communicate effectively without causing fights and quarrels.
h. Here are some steps to defeating anger and strife:
i. Admit you have an anger issue quit living in denial.
ii. Take responsibility and decide to manage it.
iii. Repent to the Lord for you uncontrolled anger.
iv. Pray and ask Him to help you manage it.
v. Renew you mind with sources that will help you to control your tongue and your attitude in life.
T.S. - To help mange the pressure cooker times in life we must evaluate our reactions to the pressures of life and make adjustments if necessary. Then we have to also make sure that we live a life filled with truth and not with deception.
IV. Having the truth and speaking only the truth helps us manage the pressure cooker moments in life (Proverbs 17:20, 27, 28).
a. A person who does not learn how to speak the truth will cause a pressure situation to explode because of their deceitful words and ways. (Proverbs 17:20, 27, 28)
b. Scripture Comparison:
i. Proverbs 17:20 (NIV) “A man of perverse heart does not prosper; he whose tongue is deceitful falls into trouble.
ii. Proverbs 17:20 (Message) “A bad motive can’t achieve a good end; double-talk brings you double trouble.”
1. This illustration points to the damage done by lies.
a. A man in a small village had been found guilty of starting a malicious rumor about another man. This rumor was not only untrue, but had seriously damaged the other man’s reputation and family. As is often the custom in small villages, the accused was taken before the chief of the village who served as a judge and would hear the case and decide the man’s punishment if found guilty. After hearing the facts of the case, the chief found the accused to be guilty and was now preparing to sentence the man to his punishment. The old, wise chief handed the man a large bag of feathers and told him that his only punishment would be to place a feather on the doorstep of every person to whom he had told the rumor. The man was relieved at such a light punishment and quickly took the bag of feathers and set about his task. Four hours later, the man returned to the king with the empty bag and said, "I completed your task, sir. Is there anything else?"
"Yes, the wise chief replied. Report to me in the morning and I’ll give you the second half of your punishment." The man reported the next morning and was instructed that the second half of his punishment was to gather all the feather back up and place them in the bag. "But sir," the man replied, "didn’t you hear the storm that raged through our village last night? Didn’t you feel the force of the winds that blew? It would be impossible to know where those feathers are now."
The wise old chief raised his index finger and pointed knowingly at the man, "Now you see, my child, the damage that you have done to another. For although you told only a few lies here and there, the storm of gossip took hold of those lies and spread them far beyond your grasp to undo them. You can regret what you said, but you can never fully undo what you’ve said."
Contributed to sermon central by: Greg Warren
iii. Proverbs 17:27 (NIV) “A man of knowledge uses words with restraint, and a man of understanding is even-tempered.”
iv. Proverbs 17:27 (Message) “The one who knows much says little; an understanding person remains calm.”
1. Catch this phrase, “Speak the truth and remain calm!” is a great way to reduce the pressures in your life.
v. Proverbs 17:28 (NIV) “Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue.”
1. Steve Shepherd noted this thought, “The most difficult thing to explain is something you had no business saying in the first place.”
vi. Proverbs 17:28 (Message) “Even dunces who keep quiet are thought to be wise; as long as they keep their mouths shut, they’re smart.”
1. The truth is if you do not have something good to say then say nothing! The more you do this the wiser you will become. The other benefit would be you would also relieve a lot of the stress and pressure in your life.
Conclusion:
Hudson Taylor, missionary to inland China, wrote this while under intense pressure and difficulty:
"It does not matter how great the pressure is. What really matters is where the pressure lies - whether it comes between you and God, or whether it presses you nearer His heart."
Dr & Mrs Howard Taylor, Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual Secret (Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1958), p.107.
We will all face pressure cooker moments in life its part of this life. But we can learn to respond to these times in a manner that glorifies God and releases the pressure. Or we can choose to respond in ways that does not glorify God and in the end makes things worse.
Altar Call:
So how many today want to relieve the pressures of this life?
How many want families that are filled with peace and contentment?
How many want relationships that filled with mercy and forgiveness?
Then let’s ask the Lord to help us and to teach us how to better manage the pressure cooker times in life.
Closing thought: many of us can get down on ourselves or others for not being perfect and failing in the pressure cooker times of life. But just remember, “God uses imperfect people to do His perfect will.”
The next time you feel like GOD cannot use someone or yourself be reminded of the following:
Noah was a drunk
Abraham was too old
Isaac was a daydreamer
Jacob was a liar
Leah was ugly
Joseph was abused
Moses had a stuttering problem
Gideon was afraid
Sampson had long hair and was a womanizer
Rahab was a prostitute
Jeremiah and Timothy were too young
David had an affair and was a murderer
Elijah was suicidal
Isaiah preached naked
Jonah ran from God
Naomi was a widow
Job went bankrupt
John the Baptist ate bugs
Peter denied Christ
The Disciples fell asleep while praying
Martha worried about everything
The Samaritan woman was divorced, more than once
Zaccheus was too small
Paul was too religious
Timothy had an ulcer...
AND
Lazarus was dead!
What do you have that’s worse than that?
So no more excuses!
God can use you to your full potential.
Besides you aren’t the message, you are just the messenger
Contributed to Sermoncentral by: Sam George
