Pliable

"Arise, and go down to the potter's house..." (Jeremiah 18:2)

Good morning, dear friends!

Photo: hans pixabay

I have always been a little fascinated by all kinds of crafts and artwork.  Not that I am the least bit artistic, but I do love watching those who are create objects of beauty, especially beautiful objects that have a functional purpose.

I think that watching skilled hands form objects on a pottery wheel has to be one of the coolest art projects ever.

I tried my hand at pottery, once in school.  It consisted of coiling a rope made of clay around a thin clay circle, writing my name in the bottom with a popsicle stick, and painting the clay once it had dried. Even that turned out lopsided and lumpy.

I think I'll leave the pottery to those who really know what they're doing.

I was rereading one of my favorite passages in Jeremiah this morning.  It is probably one of the most familiar passages in this part of Jeremiah:

Jeremiah's visit to the potter's shed.

I love the image of being clay in the potter's hand.  What a beautiful picture of God and His tender, loving care over me.  This is my life story:  "And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it." (Jeremiah 18:4) I don't know what the flaw was.  Maybe there was a pebble embedded in the clay, that would have produced a weakness in the finished product.  Maybe the vessel was just out of shape, or not the right shape for the use that was desired.  At any rate, it wasn't quite right, and the potter refashioned the vessel into something new.

How thankful I am that God, who saw my flawed sin nature, did not leave me as a vessel unfit for use.  He refashioned me into the image of His Son, by giving me a new nature.  I have been refashioned for the Master's use.

How different the story is, one chapter later in Jeremiah.

Here are other vessels, hardened and ready for use.  Perfectly good vessels, but ones that are not fulfilling their purpose.  And, because the vessels are hard, they cannot be reshaped and made new again.  God uses the image of Jeremiah breaking the clay bottle to let the people know of the coming judgment for their sin:  "Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Even so will I break this people and this city, as one breaketh a potter's vessel, that cannot be made whole again."  (Jeremiah 19:11)

How much better it is for me, if I just will remain pliable in my Master's hands.

Webster's Online Dictionary defines the word pliable in the following way:  "supple enough to bend freely or repeatedly without breaking." and "yielding readily to others."

Is this not to be my life in God's hands?

God wants me to be able to be fashioned into the image of His Son.  I cannot look like what I want to look like, but God as the Master Potter has the ultimate "say-so" in my design.  I cannot allow myself to be hardened to His will, or I will be the vessel of Jeremiah 19.

How much better it is, to stay soft and supple in the hands of my Maker.

The shaping process might be difficult, but it is much better than being broken.

May God allow my heart to stay soft and tender to His leading in my heart today.  May I not allow sin or any temptation to make me hardened and not fit for use.

I want to be a "vessel of honor" (2 Timothy 2:21) for the Lord.  May I allow Him to shape my heart as I live for Him today.