Skip to main content

In the Potter's Hand

This past Sunday I told a story about my boy having bad dreams. I said that I would talk more about how that was resolved so I wanted to take this time to write an encouragement to all of you in the church. If you remember, Cora came to tell us that her brother was crying and would we please do something about it because, she said,

"It's keeping me awake." 

We decided to bypass the lack of compassion in this very tired sister and so Mom went down to comfort the boy. As Beth went into his room, Toby was softly crying but she could see that he was shaking and covered in sweat. She brought him out of his room and held him close but he wasn't settling down. Beth tried to talk to him about the dream but he could only say that it was bad and he didn't like thinking about it. He was clenched up in her lap and he was still whimpering in a way that told Beth just how scared he was. Her response was to get him to talk. 

Beth: "Toby, tell me something that is true." 
He though for a bit but he didn't say anything.  
Beth: "Toby, does Daddy love you?" 
He quickly replied.
Toby: "Yes."
Beth: "Does Mommy love you?"
Toby: "Yes."
Beth: "Toby, are you safe?"
Toby: "Yes."

At that moment, Beth told me later, she felt his whole body soften and Toby stopped crying. Being in the potter's hand is much more than knowing that He has a plan. There are times when our senses and thoughts make us tighten up and the only thing we can see is the chaos of our immediate circumstances. In the same way, past experiences can shape us into a jagged pot that can't even function because because of the distortion caused by pain, confusion, anxiety, or anger. There are times when God will break us so He can reshape us, there are other times when He knows the best thing to do is to soften us. At those times, listen to the voice inside that says,

"My child, tell me something that is true."
If you can't think of an eternal truth then allow Him to ask.
"Does your Father love you?"
"Yes."

"God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)

Allow yourself to be placed in the safety of the potter's hand. 


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

In the Moment

I need times of transition. This is something that I have discovered about myself and my daily life. I have a difficult time jumping from one thing to the next, especially if I have spent a significant amount of time dedicated to a single focus. To contextualize what I am talking about let me say that on any given day I come up with a new list of three things to accomplish and I add these to my "daily six list." Those six are the things that I have prayerfully decided upon in order to keep myself accountable and effective in my calling and purpose. Applying both of those lists to my routine has taken a lot of time and discipline to include as an every day reality, but to talk more about that would be a blog of a different color. I usually don't need a transition between each of those nine daily items as they are similar in focus and the mental/spiritual/emotional preparation is the same. However, when I go home I need a time of transition to adjust my focus so that I ...

The Simple Invitation to Prayer

"What has helped me?" Our commitment as a church is to advance the Gospel as a Kingdom family. As we drill down on advancing through small steps and simple invitations, Lumumba was preaching out of Revelation and asked the question, "What has helped me in sharing the word of my testimony?" I was particularly caught by his first point of prayer. Jesus taught us to pray. Prayer is unique to humankind and a primary indicator of the faithfulness of God's people. God hears every prayer. It is transformational, impactful, good for the soul, empowered by the Spirit, and necessary for our intimate relationship with the Creator of the universe. Yet we often treat it as a daily chore. When prayer becomes an after thought for me I begin to forget who I am in Christ, that I have been called and sent by God, and what I have been sent to do. When my prayer life is weak it becomes a laundry list of what I hope God will do for me instead of remembering who He is and lis...

Endurance and Encouragement?

 Romans 15:5-6 May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus,   that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. The endurance of welcoming others in the midst of differing convictions can encourage the weak by walking together in full faith and the strong in demonstrating meekness. This harmony of relationship doubles as a song of praise, lifted in corporate worship. The Father is glorified in unlikely friendships, called and built together through the unique work of the Son, and operating in the unity of the Spirit. This is not possible apart from the body, the church, as it is built by God. As a light, we shoulder the responsibility of how we shine. In the darkest of times, every one of us is hoping to find the right way forward. It can be easy to blind someone with a flashlight but that only makes it difficult to see. It is better to walk togethe...