It takes a step of faith to put ourselves, as the proverbial clay, in the Potters Hands.
God’s Part
For if the Potter is to work with the clay, the clay needs to lay passive in the Potters hand to start with. Which means that the clay must submit itself to the turning and overturning of itself in the Potters hands. The Potter will take the clay that is abandoned to Him and will begin to mold and fashion it according to His will.
Once the Potter has received this submitted clay in His hands, He begins to knead and work it. He tears it apart to remove impurities. Presses it together with pressure to remove what is not supposed to be there. Perhaps there are days He lays it aside for a long time, not touching it, then takes it up again when it is ready.
Once it is pliable, He begins to shape it into a vessel He has in mind for it, a vessel that He has purposed for good work. He then turns it on the wheel, planes it, smooths it, shapes it, then dries it in the sun and bakes it in the oven.
He turns it out in His workshop, a vessel for His honor and fit for His purpose, for the use for which He has prepared for it, the good work that it will do.
The Potter works out the process of sanctification in us, as we, the clay, yield to the process.
“Yet you, Lord, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.” (Isaiah 64:8)
It is God’s part to work in us. Bringing about His purpose and will for our lives.
It is our part to entrust ourselves to Him.
And once we have done that – to keep trusting Him in the whole process, yielding to the process, surrendered and pliable in His hands, allowing Him to work out His will in our lives.
We as the clay would never change into what we are supposed to be if we do not put ourselves in the Potters hands. But when we do, we grow rapidly into what we are to be, because the hands of the Potter are skillful and knowledgeable beyond our understanding.
Have you taken the decision to yield and surrender yourself in His hands?
- We must expect Him to work in our lives. It may not be the way we expected, or what we expected, in fact it may be very different to anything we ever anticipated. But are we believing that He knows His purpose and design and are we satisfied in our hearts that His will and purpose is the best for us?
- If we expect Him to work in our lives, we should expect His discipline. His breaking off, tearing apart, pressing together – so that all that He does not want in us, is disciplined out of us and we are yielding to His process. Has your spirit said I will be obedient to throw off that which He reveals to me?
- If we chafe under the process and we do not yield to His purpose and will for our lives, we begin to worry and inevitably rebel against his purpose, and in doing that lose the blessing in that process and return to our previous state. Then He has no choice but to lay the process aside until we are ready to be made pliable again.
- There is the initial decision to yield to the process, surrender our will and rights to Him and to trust His heart , but there is also a continual decision that we have to make to keep ourselves in that place, surrendered to the Potters wheel. If we step out, we are a vessel marred on the wheel and we interrupt the process. Then the Potter has to start again.
- The Potter works in us and the power of the Holy Spirit energises and transforms us, as we grow up in Christ. The only way is to yield to His mighty working, there is no other way to transform who we are to the image of Christ.
An Act of Faith
Therefore, the act of faith is to put ourselves in His hands and then by continuous exercise of our faith, keep ourselves there.
- Our part is trusting God in the process.
- Gods’ part is to do the work.
Trusting God is the beginning and continuing foundation of this work of faith. God’s working in us depends on our co-operation. In Jesus hometown, in Matt 13:58 Jesus did not work any miracles there because of their lack of faith. It was not that He would not work it was that He could not work because of their lack of faith.
Unless I believe in God’s eternal work in me, there is no point talking about my side of trusting Him. We must believe in this work in us, as we trust Him. Both sides (God’s side and my side) must be kept present in the mind of faith.
We cannot understand either part if we do not look at both parts and recognise that the work of sanctification in us is hampered if both parts are not playing a role.
My part is to surrender to the Process, Gods part is to work.
We are to practice living in the palm of the Potters hand.
Lord, I understand that to be made new requires from me a heart that will surrender to You and then keep surrendered to You. Only then, can You do your part Lord and make me a new creation. A vessel designed and lovingly made by You for Your purpose and glory. Thank you Lord that the work that You have started in me, will be completed by You.
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