Pressure Treated

  I am now starting to see some pretty significant wear on the fence surrounding my back yard and as I repair boards that are coming loose I can see that the boards are falling apart a little more each day.  I told my wife today that I didn't think the boards used  years ago were pressure treated and that is why they are starting to rot a little.  The pressure treating process takes place in a cylindrical holding tank.  The tank is depressurized to create a vacuum and the treatment solution fills the tank.  Pressurization forces the wood to soak up the solution.  Once the treatment completes, workers and cranes remove the boards. The lumber bakes to dry, and the solution is reusable. Kiln drying adds expense to the wood treatment process; however, most pressure-treated wood can be air dried.  Some kinds of timber are difficult to treat.  Incising is a process of cutting slits into the wood to allow more surface to soak up the preservative product.   The process of of pressure treating is a remarkable thing as the wood soaks up the chemical needed to keep it fresh and make it resistant to the forces around it like rain and insects.  The process of causing the wood to soak up the chemical by putting it in a a vacuum is a lot like the process God uses in developing our faith as we live our daily life.

Our treatment is the Word of God and the ongoing way it fill us with wisdom and power in order to handle the pressures of life is an amazing process itself. The definition of the word vacuum is "a space entirely devoid of matter or a space not filled or occupied." When you give your life to Christ the vacuum that is left is empty because the penalty of sin has been removed. The Holy Spirit is the one who occupies the empty space. Jesus' death on the cross emptied the sin presence in our life as we stand before God. Of course, we know that sin is still an issue in our life, but we live in the precious freedom God gives us by not having that penalty for that sin. In that freedom there is a vacuum that has been created by God taking away our sin penalty. WE ARE NEW OR BORN AGAIN!! Many times a new believer will not realize what has just happened in their life and they will allow the wrong things to fill that vacuum in their life. It goes back to the seed in their life being overrun by the thorns of life, so there is not a lot of growth in their relationship with Jesus. The vacuum has been filled, but with the wrong things. That is why it is necessary to get into God's Word immediately after receiving Christ so that the vacuum is filled with God's teaching and direction. This process insures that the person's faith will grow stronger and be able to handle the storms of life. In a nutshell, the life is a pressure treated life. The stronger the storms, the stronger the faith because of the pressure treated life. The writer of Hebrews says it this way in Hebrews 1:2,3, "Don't run from tests and hardships, brother and sisters. As difficult as the are, you will ultimately find join them ; if you embrace them, your faith will blossom under pressure and teach you true patience." The filling of the Holy Spirit in a person's life sets that life on a course of Godliness, good habits, and Spirit-filled growth that only God can give. Over the years a believer won't get weaker because of the storms of life, but they will get more resilient to the tough things in life. Their pressure treating is real and lasting and them filling that sin vacuum with the things of God will insure they grow and get stronger in their faith. I have seen some people who have been Christians for a long time that show a very weak and old faith, and the wear and tear of living life with a world view of faith is starting to show. The only thing that will help those dear people is a fresh infusion of the Holy Spirit in their life and that can only be done by true revival. I have also seen those who are growing steadily in their faith through the years and their life is pressure treated with the best of the best, the Holy Spirit. They were shown how to grow in their faith immediately after receiving Christ, and their faith is strong and ready for the tough times and stormy things of life. They are ever growing in their faith and have a youthful vibrancy about them that shows God is still fresh in their life. That is how I want to be and my desire to serve God has to be driven by a fresh relationship that is growing and getting stronger every day.

Pressure Treated Christians are Christians who know where their strength comes from and that process began when the vacuum in their life was filled by the Holy Spirit.  That freshness in their life can only come from God.  Is your life pressure treated or is your faith old, stagnant, and dead?  It's time to come back to God and let the freshness of the Holy Spirit renew your commitment to him.  We need the freshness that can only come from God in order to face the struggles of life and follow Him.  Time to get pressure treated!!

The Pilgrimage continues...

David Warren