PSI

PSI = Pounds per square inch or pressure.

Right now, I am driving on I20 through the very desolate Eastern Louisiana. My wife is typing this article for me on my iPhone with no 4G and very little cellular coverage at all. There is not much to see except for brown grass, naked trees, and lots of eighteen wheelers. These eighteen wheelers are hauling fuel, cattle, and anything else the American consumer may want or need.

As I'm driving and thinking, I've realized that the one thing we all have in common with each other (and with the police officer who just pulled someone over) is that we are all riding on tires that require a certain amount of pressure to be of any use. The amount of pressure each tire requires depends upon what it is designed to do and how much weight it is meant to carry. A tire with too little pressure can become flat and wear out much quicker, sometimes causing a blowout.

Conversely, a tire with too much pressure can lose traction which can be hazardous in weather conditions that are less than ideal. (No joking...as I dictated this line I swerved to dodge a blown out tire in the middle of the road!)

The point is that--like tires-- we all need a certain amount of pressure to accomplish what God has designed us to do. Each person's PSI requirements are different because each person's calling is different. Although we cannot control all of the external pressures that enter into our lives, we have much more control over the internal pressures that we experience.

Here are four “to do’s” to help us start getting a handle on these internal pressures:

1. Pray and ask God what you are designed to do and ask friends you trust where your strengths lie.

2. Set Biblical, ambitious-but-reachable, and measurable goals.

3. Follow the imperative that we are given in 1 Peter 5:7, "Cast all your cares upon Him because He cares for you."

4. Don’t despise pressure and give the enemy all the credit for creating it. Sometimes it is God airing up our tires.

With God's calling firmly in our hearts, with His care firmly at our sides, and His goals firmly in our sights, we can begin to regulate (Like Warren G and Nate Dog) the pressure. With His help, we will not become flat and unable to carry the weight or become over-inflated, about to slide off the road.

All this PSI talk reminds me...I forgot to check our tire pressure before we left this morning!