Molded Clay

"But now, O Lord, You are our Father, We are the clay, and You our Potter; and all of us are the work of Your hand.  Isaiah 64:8"

I have always enjoyed thinking about God forming me into the vessel of His choosing, wondering what I look like in His eyes.  Do I look like a plate to hold nourishing foods for people, and if so, am I making certain that the foods I offer are generous and nourishing?

Am I a cup?  What am I filled with; Living Water of His Spirit or poison?   Am I a bowl, a pitcher, a saucer or simply a knick knack?

Imagining can be a lot of fun as long as we remember that He is the Potter and we are simply the clay in His hands. 

What we do not enjoy imagining, let alone experiencing, is the finishing process.  In order for a piece of clay to be molded into a useful vessel and remain so, it must go through fire.  The temperature has to be hot enough to refine it, but not so hot as to dry it too quickly and cause a crack.  Here are the temperatures needed to refine the clay into ceramic pottery:
Clay becomes pottery at temperatures over 1,000 degrees F (the beginning of glowing red heat - about 540 C). Common tribal earthenware is fired to about 1,400 degrees F (760 C). Heat removes the molecular water in the clay. This heat converts clay molecules to pottery, sculpture, brick molecules that do not dissolve in water. Glazed pottery and modern brick is fired in kilns to temperatures ranging from 1,800 F to 2,400 F. Most common clays start to deform and melt if they are fired higher than about 1,900 F. Modern toilets are fired to about 2,400 F. by Marvin Bartel, Emeritus Professor of Art, Goshen College, Indiana, USA  (Thoughts on the toilet run through my mind, but I will ignore them for now.)

God is not in the business of playing with clay.  He is in the business of making useful pottery.  Therefore, He is going to place us in the refining kilns of life.  When we feel as if we are going to crack, we can cry out to Him and let Him know.  He will either adjust the temperature, or help us realize we can withstand it and He will be there to help us make it through.  Our problem is we want the temperatures to stay lukewarm so we can always be comfortable.

I am at an age where my body is changing.  Most women have hot flashes.  I have cold flashes instead.  It starts in my feet, works its way up my legs until finally I am shivering.  My body temperature actually drops, just as a woman with hot flashes body temperature rises.  Because of this, heat feels good to me.  When others ask for 65 degree weather, I ask for 75.  However, I do sympathize with women having hot flashes.  I had them when pregnant with my sons.  They are not fun in the least.  They seem to start on the inside and work their way out so that you feel as if you are permeating heat and very little brings comfort.  I used to sit under fans that were in front of the air conditioner in order to receive a little relief.  To say these flashes are a normal part of a woman's life do not make them any easier, but it does help to remember that we are not the only ones going through them.  Many women before us have been there and survived, so we most likely will too.

We will survive the fires of refinement as well, if we remember that every Christian goes through them.  If we don't, we may crack and then what use are we?  With God's miracle working power, the crack can be glued, but will always be noticeable. 

Lord, make me a vessel worthy of Your calling and may I fulfill Your every heart desire for my life.  Help me not to crack under the pressure of the heat I must go through in order to be refined and become that hardened vessel that withstands the hands of hardship that try to remold me.  When I am refined, help me be generous and allow my contents to be poured out for others and refilled by You alone.