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The Potter’s Wheel
“The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: ‘Come, go down to the potter's house, and there I will let you hear my words.’ So I went down to the potter's house, and there he was working at his wheel. The vessel he was making of clay was spoiled in the potter's hand, and he reworked it into another vessel, as seemed good to him. Then the word of the Lord came to me: ‘Can I not do with you, O house of Israel, just as this potter has done?’ says the Lord. ‘Just like the clay in the potter's hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel.’"
Jeremiah 18:1-6
Change is a troublesome thing, for me at least. I enjoy routines and find some real comfort in knowing what to expect and what is expected, yet changes are how we grow and learn. Sometimes practices, especially practices of a spiritual nature, can slowly shape us without us realizing it.
One practice that I hold is the Daily Office and the reading of the Scriptures for that day. Often, I encounter texts I have read before, so I force myself to slow down and read them, not scan them. I have discovered that this process is one way in which I am changed, molded by the word of God – just like the potter and the clay. Just as the potter cannot spin the wheel too fast, I cannot pray the office too fast or it loses its shape like the clay. Through the prayers and Scriptures, my ideas, concerns and thoughts are molded to be more Christ-like.
My questions for this Daily Word are twofold: are we aware that we are in God’s hands and are being molded for His purposes; and are we engaging with our spiritual practices with an intentionality in which we may be changed? If you have noticed, I keep using the word “practice.” This is intentional because praying, studying Scripture … all is practice – something that we do to grow stronger, but never perfect. Known to us or unknown to us. God is at work changing us and those around us. Let us be prayerful and wise in growing into that change.
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