But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed… (2 Corinthians 4:7-8).

There’s a science experiment I remember doing as a kid.  You take a metal container of some kind—it has to be metal, and it has to have a lid.  Fill the container about halfway with water and set it on the stove.  Heat it until the water inside is boiling, then turn off the heat and screw the lid onto the container.

Then you wait…

As the container cools, it begins to implode.  It’s like some giant, unseen hand is squeezing the can. The whole thing crumples right before your eyes.  Way cool.

Why does the can crumple?  Pretty simple, really.  By boiling the water, you increase the air pressure inside the can and drive much of the air out.  As the can cools, the air pressure drops, and the can tries to suck more air in—except it can’t, because you put the cap on.  You end up with a can that has very little air inside.  The outside air pressure—the weight of the world, so to speak—literally crushes it.

Tell me you’re making the connection.

You, Beloved, are not empty inside.  You are filled with the treasure of His truth.  This world and all its pressures—crushing as they are—will not destroy you.

So there.