Don't Throw It Away!

"The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying,  Arise, and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words. Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels.  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 18:1-4).

     Many years ago, when I was in college, I had to take an art class. During this class, the instructor brought in a potter's wheel and some clay. She put the clay on the wheel and turned it on. Suddenly, right before our eyes, she sculpted a beautiful bowl. She made it look so easy! She then gave each of us a piece of clay and told us that we were to create something only using the clay and our hands, then we were to use a sharp instrument and write our initials on the bottom of it and place it on the shelf to dry. Then, she would put it in the kiln (the oven) to harden it to make it permanent. Without this process, the clay would still be soft and not be usable. She told us that in two days, we would be able to paint our creation and then we could take it home. We would only get one of two grades:  pass or fail. The only way to get a fail was if we refused to do it, or if it fell apart while it was in the kiln. She explained to us that if we had things in the clay, (dirt, hair, air bubbles, or anything that was not supposed to be in there) it would fall apart when the fire began to heat up the clay.

     All the next day, I was nervous, hoping my clay vase I had created did not fall apart. I went and got some flowers for it, and even made room on a shelf in my home for my new vase. I was really hoping it did not fall apart. I went in the next day, and could not find my vase on the shelf. I hunted everywhere. It was not there. I was devastated!  I thought maybe someone else took it by mistake. No one had it. The only thing on the shelf something that I could not tell what it was. I knew it wasn't mine. The instructor looked on it and it had my initials. I was shocked!  I told her I had made a vase, and this was not a vase. She explained that things happen in the kiln sometimes and things come out of the fire looking different than when they went in. She told me I got a passing grade because it did not fall apart. I was glad for that, but very sad that my vase didn't turn out the way I thought it should. I was getting ready to throw it away when someone asked me if they could have it. I asked them why they wanted it and they told me it was a perfect candle holder!  I didn't want it to be a candle holder, I wanted a vase.  I didn't even think it looked like a candle holder. Then, I studied it closely. I examined it from every angle, and it did, in fact, look like a candle holder. So, I decided to keep it and paint it. The instructor said she was glad I decided to keep it and not throw it away, because she thought I meant for it to be a candle holder. 

     I put a candle in it when I got home and it fit perfectly. I used my new candle holder for years afterwards, and later, while moving from one house to another, it got broken. I cried. That was my creation, and now it was broken and useless. To think:  something that at one time I was ready to throw away, now I did not want to lose.

      The lesson to this true story?   God is the Potter and we are the clay. He shapes and molds our lives into what He wants us to be. Often times, we are ready to give up and throw away everything He has done for us because our lives didn't turn out the way we thought they should have. We don't see the purpose or usefulness in our lives. We feel we are just sitting on the shelf unwanted and unloved. God has a purpose. He wants us to be like that candle holder and shine His light to this world. We might think we would rather be something else. Maybe we want to be a musician or preacher or teacher or whatever; but God has designed us to be something else. We should not despise the work that God is doing and has done in us. He knows what He is doing. 

     We all go through the fire. Trials and problems come. Sometimes, we fall apart when we go through those hard times. When that happens, the Master Potter lovingly starts all over and begins the shaping process in us all over again. He never gives up on us. Never. He never will. Trust Him to create in you His divine purpose and plan. Don't throw it away because it isn't what you wanted it to be. Stay on that potter's wheel until you are the vessel of honor He wants you to be. 

"But now, O Lord, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand."  (Isaiah 64:8).

         We must remember that we are valuable and very much loved by the Lord. He cares for us deeply and wants to create in us a mighty work. We must allow Him to shape and mold us and we must be willing to go through trials (the fire). If we never go through the fire, then we are as the clay that never goes through the kiln (oven). We will not be durable. We will not endure. We will not become strong. We often times look back later and realize that we came out of the fire different than we were when we went in. That's what helps us grow. The fire isn't pleasant, but it is necessary for our usefulness in the Kingdom of God.

     Don't give up. God is still patiently working on each of us. We must be willing to do the work that God called us to do. Let Him continue working. He has a plan and purpose that we can't even imagine!  He doesn't make mistakes, so we shouldn't throw it away!