Yet LORD, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we all are the work of your hands.            Isaiah 64:8 (CSB)

Last year, I took the kids to watch a potter. My boys were instantly intrigued by the mess everywhere and the constant slinging of soon-to-be pottery. My girls were impressed by the beautiful creations lining his tables. We watched him from start to finish create a cute mug with a fancy little handle. I thought we’d walk away then. But my kids wouldn’t be torn away. Fascinated, they inched closer until I thought we’d have a disaster on our hands. The potter laughed at their eagerness and explained each step of the process to them as he grabbed another portion of clay.

Once, when the lump spun haphazardly threatening to fly off the wheel, he held his hands still, slowly shaping it back into the desired product. Not once did he take a half-shapen lump of clay and declare it finished. Or a waste to discard, never to be used again. Every single lump of clay had potential and purpose.

From glazed and speckled platters to earthen vases to fruit and bread bowls, he saw a vision for each lump. And he saw it through.

We brought home a beautiful blue, speckled fruit bowl that day to remind us that even when we feel like removing ourselves from God’s perfect molding, He still has his hand on us, slowly shaping us into a work of art. Even when we feel finished or frustrated and want to remove ourselves from the potter’s wheel, He’s in control. Even when we want to sit cautiously on the shelf as an ugly unfinished lump of clay, He’s there and He’s got this.

A Work of Art

The Bible describes us as clay in the potter’s hands. Maybe that’s why we stood so fascinated on that day a year ago. The Bible came to life in the beige clay spinning on the wheel. Sometimes I relate to pottery when my life is spinning out of control or circumstances around me leave me spinning. Maybe you’ve experienced similar chaos and confusion. It feels crazy!

We let those situations get the best of us and we focus on our feelings. Before we know it, we’re threatening to fly off the potter’s wheel. You don’t have to live life out-of-control. I’ve felt that way before. Finished. Not as in I’m beautiful and whole but exhausted, weary, and filled with lies that I’m not making a difference. So why try? Comparing myself to clay, I figured removing myself from the spinner would be better.

Not as in death.

As in sitting out on the shelf as a beige lump useless to anyone because I felt sorry for myself. Because something was too hard. Or because so-and-so didn’t like me. Or because of whatever.

The enemy is really good about throwing our failures in our faces and telling us how worthless we are.

You aren’t. I’m not.

We aren’t finished yet.

So maybe you’ve had a bad day, too. You might feel like you’re spinning but it isn’t out-of-control because the Potter has his hand on you and He is gently and lovingly shaping you into someone wonderful. That’s the life lesson six kids and a mom are taking home after a visit to the potter. Hide that in your heart. <3

You’re still being shaped, friend. Own it.