You the clay, God the potter

The year that went by may have been joyful for some while for others it may have been a turbulent one. We cannot change the past, but we can ruin a perfectly good present by worrying about the future.

God always urges us to look forward with continued hope, not worry.  Corrie Ten Boom, survivor of The Nazi Holocaust conveys this message so beautifully: “Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows, it empties today of its strength.”

The Psalmist fills us with hope as he sings: “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning." (Psalm 30:5).

Rembrandt was a 17th century Dutch painter, renowned all over the world, even to this day.  Severe depression struck his life when Saskia died.  Suffering the loss of his wife, he stopped painting. It took a long time for him to resume painting, but with a new power and passion. Some of his critics suggested that the death of his wife was a turning point in his career. It transformed him into an amazingly new and outstanding artist.

The story of Rembrandt’s life reveals how God can use our life’s tragedies and shape us into something greater than we can imagine, if only we put our unconditional trust in Him.  When Prophet Jeremiah was commanded by the Lord to go and preach to the kings and the common people in Jerusalem, he trembled and sought the Lord’s help. The Lord responds to him: “Go down to the potter’s house, where I will give you a message.” Jeremiah went there and saw the potter working at his wheel. Whenever a piece of pottery turned out imperfect, he would take the clay and make it into something else. (Jeremiah18).  The Lord goes on to explain to Jeremiah that He has the power to build and to destroy, to plant and to uproot, to bring down Kingdoms and raise new nations. God instilled hope in prophet Jeremiah.

When we look at the future with a feeling of hopelessness or keep foreseeing only disappointment and failures, what we are doing in effect is, slamming the door of God.

Focus more on God. Do not fix Him deadlines for certain things you expect to happen in life. He knows what is best for the future.  Entrust your life to Him. You will see a silver lining around every dark cloud.