While I was preparing to take my comprehensive exams when I was in graduate school, someone gave me the gift of a massotherapy appointment. I had never had a massage before, but it seemed like a good idea after spending hours upon hours of reviewing notes and pouring over highlighted passages in books. I could feel every muscle in my neck, shoulders, and back tied in knots.
I must admit that I felt a bit intimidated at the outset as I entered the dimly lit room. Soft music was playing and the bubbling sound of the fish tank in the room added to the atmosphere. So far, I got the picture that relaxation was the goal, but I was not feeling it.
Over the hour I was on the table, however, the diminutive Japanese woman working on me seemed to be able to identify every taut muscle as well as each strand of that muscle. At the end of that hour, she had successfully relieved all the tension I had carried into the room.
I would love to say that she fixed the problem permanently and that tension never returned; but as I am sure you can guess, that was not the case.
Tension is unavoidable. It is born from multiple sources in each season of life. It happens to women as well as men, the young and the not so young.
“Tension is living in the gap between certainty and uncertainty.” Dan Allender
Reading Dan Allender’s statement gives me much to ponder because I live often in the gap despite certain assurances and absolutes that provide me with a foundation on which to stand. (So do you!) As a believer, I can have a certainty of God’s love and grace, His provision, care, and my eternal destination. But in the midst of that, much uncertainty remains in the details of daily life. I don’t live in Eden before the fall. Life is not a rose garden.
I plead guilty to trying to avoid tension as much as possible despite knowing its inevitability.
Is there value in tension? Does God have a purpose for creating or allowing it?
I wanted to reduce tension (stress) as I prepared for my comprehensive exam, but a certain amount of tension also was needed to push me to work at focusing and studying to demonstrate I had mastered the material being used to evaluate my learning. The right amount would cause me to function at just the right intensity and serve me well, but if it were too high I would be more likely to forget or jumble the material I had studied and do poorly.
That kind of tension is situation specific, but without my awareness surface tension is acting all around us, everywhere and all the time, affecting our daily life and bodily well being.
God has designed tension into His creation in a variety of ways.
For instance, surface tension keeps billions of cells in our body functional and ensures the proper organization and balance of biomolecules such as proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, and nucleic acid into membranes. When I discovered that information in reading about tension, I was in awe of the intricate design of our Creator. It gave me another glimpse of the purpose of tension if it is in the exact amount needed.
I love music and am blessed to recall the sounds of the piano echoing through the house as our son and daughter were growing up learning to play and becoming proficient doing so. I get reminders of that when I visit their homes now and often hear a grandchild practicing. Other stringed instruments have been added to our family beyond the piano and include violins, cello, guitar, and ukulele.
You and I can be similar to a violin. Exact tension is necessary with stringed instruments for them to stay in tune. Lack of tension in piano strings not only affect tune, but also can cause the soundboard to crack.
The exact tension on a violin not only keeps it playing well and in tune, but it also keeps the bridge in place and balanced.
A violin is also sensitive to many environmental factors including humidity and dry air. In addition to tension, friction is needed on the strings to produce a decent tone. Tension also might not be a friend to the violin. If the bow is left with tension on it, it will warp.
Our challenge whether we are playing a stringed instrument or not, studying or not, facing a crisis on not, is to remember that living in this life in the gap between birth and heaven will expose us to tension. Our daily life will include certainty and uncertainty.
God has designed us, hardwired us, to grow. All growth stretches us beyond our comfort level. Tension is a constant companion.
The trouble with tension is that it can be a friend when it works exactly as needed and a foe when it is absent or present in excess.
The good news is that God uses it not only for our growth, but to remind us of our reliance on Him. Growth comes when I learn to rest in Him in the midst of tension and focus on the assurance of the unseen.
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” Heb. 11:1 ESV
Pam, I love to think about these sort of topics. It amazes me how life is such a balance. Good things can become harmful if we don’t use them in the way God meant for them. And certainly tension can give us the motivation to get things done and cause us to lean and depend on God for our strength. I’m so glad you shared this at #100HappyDays!
Me too! Whether it is the universe or our bodies or anything else in creation, we were designed and it was designed to operate in a delicate balance. If it and we do, then we experience good things and health. If it or we do not, we start to have any number of problems. It is a bit like the truth that our greatest strength also can be and often is our greatest weakness. Life seems to be full of paradoxes!
Unfortunately, I have had it in excess. I have got to loosen back up!! Great perspective here! I hadn’t thought of the necessary, positive side of tension, only of my excess. What the Lord can do with us when we surrender to his will.
Yep, some seasons can be like that! Been there and done that a whole lot!!! He can do more than we can possibly imagine!! Have a great day!!
Pam, I love your words here, and they somewhat mirror what I wrote about this week. Wow! — I am reading Allender’s Leading with the Limp this year — my 1st book by this author. I have a good friend who loves him, so I plan to hit “To Be Told” next.
Thanks so much, Lyli! I have not read that Allende book, but I love his work and writing! My first book of his was The Wounded Heart, but his older ones like The Cry of the Soul and Bold Love are outstanding in addition to To Be Told. I appreciate your encouragement and always enjoy linking up and reading your posts!
“Tension is living in the gap between certainty and uncertainty.” Dan Allender.
That tension is something that I have been pondering about so often the past few years. I want to make friends with uncertainty. But it’s not an easy playmate! ha. I agree with you that the tension is built into the system and we need to take assurances from the things we do know, and then trust that God will handle the rest. We don’t have to know everything! 🙂
You’re so right! Tension is definitely not an easy playmate and Dan’s quote has given me much to ponder since I first read it. Thanks for your affirmation!
Beautiful post. Yes, tension can be a catalyst for growth as we lean on Him & let Him do the needed work. Glad to have been neighbors this morning at Thought Provoking Thursday.
Always great to hear from you and find you hear, Joanne! Blessings on your day!!
“Growth comes when I learn to rest in Him in the midst of tension and focus on the assurance of the unseen.” – I love that! If every day were perfect and we never faced a problem, what need would we have for God? The tension in our lives forces us stubborn humans to rely on our Maker and to place our burdens in His hands. We can trust Him to take care of all our needs and grow us in the process. He is far wiser than any of us and He loves us more than we can even fathom!
Blessings, Joan
Thanks so much, Joan. You are so right! He uses ALL things in our lives to draw us to Him, to come to recognize the breadth and depth of His love and care for us, to rest in the assurance of His presence on the most difficult days as well as the most lovely ones! Love and grace, Pam
My prayer is that I don’t cause tension. EEEK!
I understand that one, but I am quite sure that I have done so without planning on it!
Hi Pam … your words are instructive and thought-provoking. Now to find that perfect place of tension that leaves us stimulated and responsive and creative.
Not the other kind which sends us looking for a great massage therapist {which by the way I haven’t found in our new neck of the woods.}
Sigh …
Yes, it is a tough spot to find inside as well as without. It can be hard to find someone good. When the sweet lady mentioned in this post moved to Austin, TX, I realized how spoiled I was in her skills as well as her price. I have tried several since then and finally found someone I see periodically, but retirement means it is not often due to the cost for such a luxury. God bless you today, my friend!
I haven’t thought of tension in this way before, but the instruments brought it home. When our piano is out of tune, it sounds pretty sad. (Like now.) Strings pulled too tight causes it to sound uptight. Such a good correlation to life. Enjoyed visiting today via #coffeeforyourheart.
Thanks for visiting, Kristi! As I was considering the topic, a recent visit to our daughter’s and the violin, cello, and piano practicing of my grandchildren brought the illustration to mind. Have a God day!
Pam, your post highlights one of the most tragic parts of our fallen-ness — we take God’s good gifts and turn them into something they were never meant to be. Even our ability to be tense was given to us for our protection, but it becomes a symptom of our faithless striving when we focus on trying to hold the world at an angle that pleases us.
You have such a beautiful site here.
Thanks for your thoughtful reflection!
Thanks, Michele! I appreciate your thoughts! You’re right! Your encouragement is a blessing!