The Potter and Clay Reflecting Him

Today we conclude the FIRST week of review of the marvelous study "Reflecting Him" by Carla McDougal. This is probably the biggest "aha" moment for me in a long time.

Let's pickup with our resident pottery expert Cynthia Bonner: "Every piece produced is unique and never exactly the same as the previous ones. All pottery creations are indeed individual creations...The potter shapes the vessel by applying pressure inside and/or outside the walls as he lifts. Remember that with every pressure action there is a reaction in the clay. The walls may move in or out depending on the pressure made by the potter's motion. He may throw a bowl, plate, vase, bottle, or pitcher; he may form a pedestal at the foot of a pot, a belly in the center or a neck at the rim. The pot's shape depends on the clay's capabilities and the potter's skills." (Reflecting Him page 24, emphasis mine).

Now a couple of Scriptures:

Isaiah 29:16

New Living Translation (NLT)

"How foolish can you be?
He is the Potter, and he is certainly greater than you, the clay!
Should the created thing say of the one who made it,
“He didn’t make me”?
Does a jar ever say,
“The potter who made me is stupid”?

Isaiah 45:9-10

New Living Translation (NLT)

⁹ “What sorrow awaits those who argue with their Creator.
Does a clay pot argue with its maker?
Does the clay dispute with the one who shapes it, saying,
‘Stop, you’re doing it wrong!’
Does the pot exclaim,
‘How clumsy can you be?’
¹⁰ How terrible it would be if a newborn baby said to its father,
‘Why was I born?’
or if it said to its mother,
‘Why did you make me this way?’”

I specifically chose the New Living Translation because one of the questions Carla asks in her study is in regard to the tone of the passages. I felt that the NLT practically answered the question by itself!

When I read the passages that way, I thought of all the times that I complain about myself. About having a difficult life sometimes. About having Myasthenia. About having a trach. About being short even!

And then I think, "Who do I think I am? Who am I to tell the Creator of the Universe, the God that split the Red Sea wide open...the Almighty Himself, who am I to tell him He made me badly?" How selfish!

Do I wish I was 5'9, and thin and healthy? Sometimes. But God's purpose for me is FAR more important that any desire I can have. If this is the condition in which He can use me the best for His glory, then so be it. I am the clay. I am the created, not the Creator.

I must move on to the last step of the pottery process. The fire. Do you remember in elementary school, making something out of clay and putting it in the kiln and just waiting with bated breath to see whose creation blew up? I certainly do. Thankfully it was never mine. Being 30 years ago, it was still socially acceptable to smoke, so lots of us Christian school kids made ashtrays. (Funny now when you look back!)

The firing process changes the entire look of the piece. It goes into the fire still kinda ugly. I mean, it's shaped, it's formed, it's got some color on it, but when you fire it up...THAT'S when the true beauty comes out. The shine. The glow. The radiance.

Carla says, "We must go through some fiery trials so others will see a beautifully finished product with a tag that reads, "Specifically made by the hands of Jesus."" (Reflecting Him page28)

Did you read that? Specifically. Exactly. Precisely. Obviously.

Made. Invented. Prepared. Created.

Friends, do you see? We were all made by a God who cared enough to sit at a potter's wheel and create us individually, uniquely, and perfectly for His purpose. And then, to make us our BEST, He allows us to go through fiery trials.

If it were not for the trial of MG, I would not be where I am in my life. I would not have met some of the most inspiring, amazing people fighting the same disease. I would not have my precious little boy, because I had every intention of adopting and never having my own children. I wouldn't be as strong as I am today. And I wouldn't be as grateful. Not nearly as grateful.

This study is amazing. This is only week ONE of ten. Don't worry, there won't be three posts about each week! This week was just so precious to me...how specific the pottery process really is, and how much time and energy and thought was put into creating only me. I sat on that potter's wheel, in the hands of My Maker. And I PRAY that I will never again resist who I am supposed to be, or complain that I am not something I wish I were. I am my Maker's intended creation. And that is a beautiful thing.

"Reflecting Him" The Potter Part 2

"This week we examined the potter's purpose for his or her clay and the importance of the clay staying mold-able throughout the shaping process." (Relfecting Him, page 18, italics mine)

Ouch. Obviously, I am the clay. What would happen if clay could somehow choose to become stone? If clay could (because the Creator gave it free will) choose to NOT be pliable?

It would NEVER become anything, let alone the unique piece of art it is supposed to become. So, you ask, how could I ever become unpliable? (All right, stop snickering).

Here comes my word-nerdiness: Pliable: Flexible. Elastic. Stretchable. Shapable. Moldable. Yielding. Willing. Compliant. Submissive. Obedient.

Ouch again. You see, if I, (the clay) cannot be these things, if I am unwilling to be flexible and stretchable and submissive (things that do NOT come easily), if I don't do that I am missing out on God's purpose for my life.

Stay with me here: "Sometimes during the pottery process, the wheel must be immobile to create exceptional character. Yet at other times the wheel must rotate quickly and with precision. The potter decides what to do, depending on each pot's purpose." (Reflecting Him, page 18, italics mine.)

So I have to ask myself if I am willing to be pliable. Am I consenting to be stretched to beyond what I think I can handle? Am I eager to let My Potter create what He wants? Am I content to relinquish all control? Am I willing to embrace Myasthenia Gravis as a "unique" quality of my pot? Am. I. Willing?

Are you?

Oy. If you picture the wheel as the circumstances in our lives (as Carla McDougal suggests in her study), there are times when life seems to be standing still. Possibly even passing you by. I have been, and still am in such a place. I believe my wheel may be ever so slightly starting to turn again, but the stillness can be a painful place. Then we have the times when we feel like life is spinning out of control. Remember this:

(In the words of Cynthia Bonner, on the importance of centering the clay just perfectly, and the spinning of the wheel)

"This involves the potter's full concentration and requires the weight of the potter's arm muscles. At this point, if not properly centered, the lump of clay can go flying into orbit as the wheel launches into action.... The mass of clay is penetrated to create a V-shaped opening, and then the piece is formed by lifting the pot's walls. The potter must maintain a firm and steady upward movement by locking his hands together.... Even though the wheel aids in establishing symmetry and precision, every piece produced is unique and never exactly the same as the previous ones." (emphasis mine)

Wow. I'm telling you, friends, I have been on that wheel when the piercing and gutting began. I remember going through an 8 year diagnostic process. I remember wondering if I would live or die. What I sometimes forgot is that God had His hands on me the entire time. He doesn't push pause. He doesn't get up to go grab a snack and leave me spinning aimlessly. He lifts me. He molds me. He sculpts me. He never leaves me. He has His eye on me. He is making me His unique creation.

If clay could feel, do you think it would enjoy the process? Not always. But sometimes it must just think, "What a ride."

"Reflecting Him" Review Part 1

I have the privilege of reviewing a Bible study called "Reflecting Him" by Carla McDougal. This is her first study written, although you would never know it! Week Two of this study has challenged me more than any single week of any single study I've ever done. In fact, this study is so amazing, I will be doing a series of reviews, because there is WAY too much to fit in one post.

There are literally dozens of references in the Bible to potters and clay. The most significant ones (to me) will be integrated in these reviews. I'm going to start with Isaiah 29:16. "You turn things upside down, as if the potter were thought to be like the clay! Shall what is formed say to Him who formed it, 'He did not make me?' Can the pot say of the potter, 'He knows nothing?'"

Ouch. For me, that was almost enough! I can't count the times I have thought "Why can't I just be normal, why can't I just be like that person, who has their health?" I've even thought "They don't even appreciate their health, why do they get to have perfect health?" Well, check out an expository of Romans 9:21: "Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor?" (The NIV uses "some pottery for special purposes and some for common use?")

The words "power over" in this verse come from the word exasla in Greek. That means "the right to act, decide or dispose of one's property as one wishes." "The same lump" in Greek is furamatos, "that which is mixed or kneaded." (Reflecting Him pg 6).

Before we go further, I want to refer to the expert of the week in this study, Cynthia Bonner. She is a pottery specialist, and throughout this week, Carla McDougal refers to her to explain the real process of creating pieces of pottery.

"Mixing the clay and temper to form the prepared or ready-to-use clay is similar to kneading dough when you are making bread. Once mixed together, the clay will actually improve as it ages, but it can also be used right away....By applying pressure on the clay, the potter eliminates air bubbles that can cause problems down the road." (Cynthia Bonner, as quoted in Reflecting Him, page 14.)

So far this is what I've learned:
1. God is my Creator. He created me with a specific purpose in mind, just like a potter knows what he or she is going to make before he or she starts to fashion it.

2. God made me according to the purpose for which I have been called. Who am I to tell Him He made me incorrectly? Even before MG, I have always been exactly how God created me to be.

3. God must knead me to get out the air pockets so I don't disintegrate when I'm put into the fire. While this process is NOT enjoyable, it is necessary to become what God wants me to be.

I'll continue part two of the potter and the clay tomorrow...I think this is enough for one day!


About Carla
Carla McDougal is the founder of Reflective Life Ministries and Share Fair, an annual conference for connecting, equipping, and encouraging women in ministry. She speaks at women’s events, retreats, and conferences in the U.S. and internationally. Carla married her high school sweetheart, Fred, and they have four children ages 16 to 23 and live in Magnolia, Texas. Reflecting Him: Living for Jesus and Loving It (WinePress Publishing, 2010) is Carla’s first book, although she’s been involved in leading and teaching Bible studies for more than 20 years. Carla writes a Monday morning e-votional at her blog, Carla’s Corner.