Jeremiah 18:1-6 KJV
The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, Arise, and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words. Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the LORD. Behold, as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel.
Pottery is an amazing thing. I've never had the privilege of being able to observe a potter in action except thru a YouTube video. What an art that is! To be able to take clay, add some water, put that lump of clay on a spinning wheel, and by various hand positions, the judicious use of more water, more clay, and of course, the ever spinning wheel, the potter can mold and shape a vessel to his or her liking.
Just as is noted in verse 4 above, sometimes the vessel is marred - even though it is being made by an expert in the field of pottery. So it is with our lives. God is in the process of shaping us, molding us to His will, helping us to be conformed to the image of His dear Son (Romans 8:29).
And, just like physical clay, we sometimes do not take very well to the shaping process. Sometimes in the process of shaping, we lash out at others...maybe say something that is better off not being said. Or, maybe we don't lash out or say anything untoward, but instead, we maybe gripe to God about how this person stepped on our toes, or said something we really didn't like or appreciate. But it could be that God is using that person or situation to grate against our grain, because that is what it takes on that day to help mold us, and form us into the vessel He wants us to be.
No matter how much you might strain your ear to hear, the vessel being formed never asks the potter, "why hast thou made me thus?" (Romans 9:20). So, maybe instead of asking God "Why are You allowing me to go thru this?", we could take the view that God is going to use this situation for my good (Romans 8:28).
Yours in Christ,
Pastor Calvin Odom