MARRED IN HIS HANDS
But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. Jer. 18:4, N.I.V.
The classroom was filled with active minds and restless feet. The teacher seemed unconcerned about making his lesson interesting to his young students. He simply droned on and on from the textbook, entirely unaware that he had lost not only their attention but their respect for him as well. He was doing his job, he thought, in making the required information available to them. What they did with it was their problem.
In the same building, another teacher sat on the front of his desk, in active conversation with a dozen or so of his students while the rest of the class listened. Informal in his approach, he met question after question after question with answers that were geared to allow young minds to wrap around them, exploring and testing their content. It was exciting and rewarding for everyone, including the teacher.
In order for the second teacher to provide this vital learning opportunity for his class, he knew he had to create an atmosphere of trust and acceptance. The students lost their inhibitions when they saw that he was willing to adapt the lesson material to their ability to understand. They felt good about what was happening and consequently learned quickly. By the end of the year, not only had most of the students mastered the subject, but many felt they had gained a lasting friend in their teacher.
Our God is like the second teacher. In a metaphor to ancient Israel, He portrayed Himself as a potter shaping clay at a wheel. When the pot he was making was marred, he did not cast it aside but simply modified his plans and continued working with it. Unlike an impersonal machine, the potter is attuned to the condition of the clay he is molding. In the same way, God is aware of what is happening in our lives, and He adjusts His dealings with us accordingly. Even if He has to adjust His approach to us, we may rest assured that we are still in His hands and that He will continue to work with us
Of this we can be sure: because of the wonderful ability of the great Craftsman, the clay He is molding will turn out wonderfully! And in these "earthen vessels" He places the treasure of the knowledge of who He is.
But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. Jer. 18:4, N.I.V.
The classroom was filled with active minds and restless feet. The teacher seemed unconcerned about making his lesson interesting to his young students. He simply droned on and on from the textbook, entirely unaware that he had lost not only their attention but their respect for him as well. He was doing his job, he thought, in making the required information available to them. What they did with it was their problem.
In the same building, another teacher sat on the front of his desk, in active conversation with a dozen or so of his students while the rest of the class listened. Informal in his approach, he met question after question after question with answers that were geared to allow young minds to wrap around them, exploring and testing their content. It was exciting and rewarding for everyone, including the teacher.
In order for the second teacher to provide this vital learning opportunity for his class, he knew he had to create an atmosphere of trust and acceptance. The students lost their inhibitions when they saw that he was willing to adapt the lesson material to their ability to understand. They felt good about what was happening and consequently learned quickly. By the end of the year, not only had most of the students mastered the subject, but many felt they had gained a lasting friend in their teacher.
Our God is like the second teacher. In a metaphor to ancient Israel, He portrayed Himself as a potter shaping clay at a wheel. When the pot he was making was marred, he did not cast it aside but simply modified his plans and continued working with it. Unlike an impersonal machine, the potter is attuned to the condition of the clay he is molding. In the same way, God is aware of what is happening in our lives, and He adjusts His dealings with us accordingly. Even if He has to adjust His approach to us, we may rest assured that we are still in His hands and that He will continue to work with us
Of this we can be sure: because of the wonderful ability of the great Craftsman, the clay He is molding will turn out wonderfully! And in these "earthen vessels" He places the treasure of the knowledge of who He is.
RSS Feed
