HEY, WHAT’S YOUR POSITION in CHRIST? “The Beauty of the Clay”

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations” Jeremiah 1:4-5 (NIV).

By far, the greatest gift in life is the gift of understanding. Understanding who you are, whose you are, and why you are here. Knowing that your identity is a child of the Most High, made in the image and likeness of God, is the greatest posture to acquire, understand and the space to live in.

Human life typically goes something like this; we are born to a specific family. This family will then establish habits within us, skills and identity from whence we arrive. Interestingly, it is not until WHO we are contradicts with WHERE we are that we seek understanding. Here, we begin the journey by asking; Who am I? Why am I here? How do I get to where I need to be? In addition, who is in charge of me or is anyone even in charge? Do you ever wonder how your life would have panned out if you had that understanding from the very start, that is, when you could read and write? Knowing who and whose you are, grasping this knowledge or even given a chance to cultivate the thought of it? No point in dwelling in the past; however, we will look back to move forward.

Coming to an understanding and grasping at a young age or even now that God is the ‘Potter‘ for our lives is exhilarating, liberating the soul. What does God being the Potter mean? It means,

• We are the Clay(the instrument for which He craft for a specific purpose)

• He has a purpose in mind for the clay always (God is always thinking of ways to use us)

• He searches for the clay always (God pursue us to express his glory)

• He molds and refines the clay to perfection (God has crafted us uniquely and only his view of us counts)

• He uses the clay specifically for what it was made to do (We are each unique)

• No matter what, the clay will NEVER leave His hands until his masterpiece is constructed (God has equipped us with all we need, and His eyes are continuously on us)

God told Jeremiah (as stated in our key verse), “I knew you before you were born, and I set you apart and appointed you a prophet to the nations.” How incredible a revelation. Given a message of your origin, whose you are, who made you and the unique abilities you possess, it is life-changing, transforming and sustaining. Understanding that God made me to be here on earth for such a time as this, to express and manifest who He is, is amazing!

Like clay, we need to understand our position to the potter. A revelation in the form of a message came to Jeremiah from God to go down to the Potter’s house, and he was shown how God wanted to work in the life of his children- Israelites (Jeremiah 18:1-4 NIV). In this passage, we are introduced to the vulnerable state of the clay. The clay is ‘dirt.’ Some dirt may come from the mountainside in Africa, the shore of a beach in Central America, or some deep frost in Antarctica, yet the clay’s vulnerability is still the same. It is dirt. Likewise, you and I, having a different background (from Africa, Asia, Caribbean, America, etc.), are a people chosen by God, set apart in our unique frame to do His Will.

We have to remember; clay (dirt) does not moisten, mold or maintain itself! If you own pottery and it cracks, do you say it is bad clay? No, you simply blame the potter for not making good pottery. Why? Because it is the potter who made and promised the masterpiece.

The beauty of clay is that the type of pot or craft the potter wants to make determines the kind of clay the potter uses. Additionally, the potter never lets go of a disfigured pot or craft; neither does He reject any. He will mend and mold a disfigured clay into beautiful pottery. Likewise, God has purposefully designed you and me. He formed us with every aspect of us in place for His specific purpose. No skill, ability, talent, appearance, color, gender or experiences are a crack in our makeup, but rather, unique features are woven into our formation to serve His perfect Will. It is amazing to know that God, the porter, has searched for a specific clay (you and I) for a His specific masterpiece to bring about creativity (in how others see and are transformed). Understand this truth because this is the beauty of the clay.

Prayer:

Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be your majestic name. Thank you for the thought you put into creating us. Thank you for enlightening our understanding of the truth of who you are and whose we are. 

By your Spirit, help us hold fast to this truth and walk in authority to and fro in areas you have called, chosen and prepared us for. Create in us the Spirit to embrace our uniqueness to shine your glory to the ends of the world. In Jesus Mighty Name, we ask, Amen.