A great word picture: Potter and Clay

I have been reading Jeremiah lately and have been so blessed by this prophet's words. I ran across Jeremiah 18 today, and today was just the day that I needed to hear this words spoken into my heart.

In chapter 18 we see our Lord speak to Jeremiah, telling him to go to the potters house and listen to the Lord's, which go like this (from the ESV and similiar in the NASB) :

"And the vessel he was making of clay was spoiled in the potter’s hand, and he reworked it into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to do. "

I usually like a more literal translation when trying to really understand what the Lord is trying to teach through his Word, such as the NASB, but for this passage I also looked in the New Living Translation (a more paraphrase/idea based translation) and this translation really hit me:

"But the jar he was making did not turn out as he had hoped, so he crushed it into a lump of clay again and started over."

He CRUSHED the clay and started all over.

Being an artist, and having several months of wheel-throwing pottery under my belt, I can relate. Crushing a piece that you have been working on, and staring all over is a huge deal! No one ever wants to start over, but when the pot does not cooperate, it's just what you have to do. There is no hope, once the pot has become lopsided you must just crush it and start over. The good thing about doing this is, your clay becomes eaiser to work with, more pliable. It has now been thrown once, sometimes twice, and has been worked with and is more formable, forms easier to your hand, and even feels smoother in your between your fingers.

I like the word "crushed" used in the NLT, but at the end of the ESV translation we see "as it seemed good to the potter to do." Any potter will tell you that the second pot will MOST LIKELY turn out better, more beautiful and easier to work with, when compared to the first pot.

But CRUSHED! That's a harsh word, but its what has to be done. Many times, I CRUSHED pot in anger or frustration, never in love.

Even though this even may have been intended for a different audience (Judah), I see it as very ablicable today. Many times, doesn't God choose to "crush" (in love, I hope, not frustration or anger like I did to my clay) us and "start over" because "it seems good to him to do" ? Here's the kicker, after we are crushed, spoiled and God starts over again, are we more pliable, smoother and easier to work with?

Are we submissive to the "crushing" and "starting over" because it "seems good to God to do?"

What a beautiful word picture.

A Daddy's Influence

As I was in bed, trying to fall asleep tonight (pre-PBJ), I heard the dogs barking and felt my stomach growling. I thought to myself: "why am I hungry? I ate dinner, I had lunch and snacked all afternoon." Then I remembered: I ran just before dinner. Running, or any exercise for that matter, always makes me extra hungry.

Why do I run? Who got me into running at an early age? None other than my dad. I always remember him coming home just after dark, all hot and tired from a nice run. When I was about 13, he started asking me to go run with him, or maybe I asked if I could join him. Either way, we started running. It became this "thing" that "Shelly and dad" did. It was our time. No one else, just us. Such sweet moments. To this day, I still run, more regularly now, but I attribute it to my daddy. He encouraged me, taught me good rules of running and showed me the best way to avoid a runners cramp. He would stop and walk with me when I got tired and encourage me: "You can make it, come on, let's go!" Then we would sip on cold water, sitting on the steps of 149 El Dorado, listening to the cars whiz by and enjoying a "runner's high."

Dad's may never realize the influence they can have over daughters. A simple word or act of love can do so much for a little girl. I do understand and know for a fact that this influence can sway to both sides: positive and negative. Some women may have never experienced what I am describing, so I consider myself blessed to have shared some amazing experiences and learned some life lessons with my dad. I have so many awesome memories with my daddy, he's my dad, the one God blessed me with.

As I sit here, eating two pieces of peanut and butter and jelly toast (trying to kill the "post-run" grumble in my stomach), I am reminded the many times in my later teenage years and during the times I visited home during college, dad and I ate a "midnight" snack around 10:30. After a while, it became a habit, and a ritual that I looked forward to. I sit here tonight, eating my toast, wishing that I had my dad here, or that I was there to share this moment with him. No one else shared this moment with us. Something about the both of us, we just got hungry for a snack around this time of night, or maybe it turned into a habit of "quality time" with hunger as an excuse to simply get 10 minutes of each others day. I will always think of him and remember him each time I make PBJ toast (two pieces) for a late night snack.

Now that the dogs have stopped barking and my stomach has stopped growling, maybe I can fall asleep......

dirty diapers

why would I blog about dirty diapers -- right? this blog actually has nothing to do with dirty diapers, its just the way I can remember something. what is it called when you make up a silly sentence to help you remember something? I can't remember, but anywho.....

OK, so I was wanting a way to help me remember the 10 plagues that Pharaoh inflicted. I just could never get it, so now, I got it.

But Forever God Forgives Little Babies Having Little Dirty Diapers

But = blood
Forever = frogs
God = gnats
Forgives = flies
Little = livestock
Babies = boils
Having = hail
Little = locust
Dirty = darkness
Diapers = death of the first born

but forever god forgives little babies having little dirty diapers