“But now, O Lord, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You our potter; and all we are the work of Your hand.” (Isaiah 64:8)
Journal Entry
“No matter how much they desire to, earthly fathers will never be able to effect change in their children in the same way that God can. God is not just your father; He is a potter. Therefore, He is able to mould and refine you, but you have to allow Him to. A potter does not take direction from clay! Trust Him. He has millenniums of experience.
Father, how do I let you do your job unhindered? It’s so hard not to butt in.”
Commentary
I had a few ceramics classes back in high school, but I can’t say I was very skilled at it. Occasionally, my creations would resemble that of my teacher; however, more often than not, I’d end up with the asymmetrical, disfigured cousin of the prototype. If the clay could speak, it would probably lament that it hadn’t been moulded by someone more talented. “Why Grace?”, I’m sure it would exclaim. If it could see, it would be jealous of the ones that weren’t misshapen. In fact, a tear might be might shed as it entered the furnace knowing that this is it – “I’m stuck like this forever.”
My clay wasn’t human. Obviously. But you are. As ‘human clay’ you have the privilege of being moulded by the greatest ceramicist that you could ever wish for: God. He not only created you, but He also has a plan for your life. In theory, that means you ought to leave Him to do what He deems best.
Questioning the process, whilst forgetting the assurance of a positive outcome, demonstrates a lack of faith.
In practice, mentally letting go isn’t as simple as it seems. On a consistent basis, I have to remind myself not to be jealous of others because God seems to be doing a ‘better job’ with them. In fact, some issues are directly linked to the times I decided to be my own potter… clearly I thought moulding human clay would be easier than physical clay *sigh*. If you’re like me, then the real question is why you’re so eager to claim a responsibility that isn’t yours.
Although God gives you free will, the path you choose for yourself will always be inferior to what He had planned for you. As great as it might be, it wouldn’t be what He had intended. With God there is no finish, you have an amazing Father that will continue to invest the time and effort it takes for you to be like Him. Time wasted wishing you had someone else’s life robs you of focusing on who you were created to be. Whether you’re disheartened by your past mistakes, or discouraged that you can’t decipher what God is doing (despite your ongoing faithfulness) – trust the vision that He has for you.
So…
You and God will probably have creative differences regarding how your life ‘should’ pan out. However, your trust shouldn’t be based on your understanding of the process, but rather, His experience.
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