Spring 1988
Thou Art the Potter
Diane M. Roney.

Hands move over the uneven surface of the lump of moist clay. As an image of a man is studied by the artist, the fingers seem suspended as if waiting for the directive message to move from eyes to nerve impulses to hands.

Two gouges are made in the lump; the excess clay is tossed aside. The supple mass gives way at the touch of the sculptor. Delicate tools become extensions of the artist. The work is intricate. Clay is added, taken away, made rough, smoothed out. After some work, the lump of clay begins to reflect the artist's vision.

The clay is carefully wrapped in damp cloths that will keep it soft until the next session. It is placed on the shelf, there to wait for the artist to return. Yet the clay is ever with the artist, being sculpted in thought. Work will continue until the full vision of the artist is reflected in clay.

"O Lord, you are out Father; we are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand" Isaiah 64:8. God is at work in our individual lives in order to bring into being a people formed in the image of Christ. "Those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers" Romans 8:29. "He (the Son) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation" Col. 1:15. "The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being. . ." Hebrews 1:3.

". . .And (you) have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator" Col. 3:10. "And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven" I Cor. 15:49. "And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit" 2 Cor. 3:18.

As a sculptor uses hands and tools to fashion clay into an image envisioned, God has his tools to conform us to his image. His tools are the situations and circumstances we face during the time he has appointed for us to be on this earth. If we desire to come into the fullness of God's purpose in bearing the likeness of Christ, we must come to understand God's use of circumstances.

The circumstances of our lives are always in a state of flux. They ebb and flow like the changing tide. Circumstances are the vessels God uses to do the impossible work of transforming us into the image of Christ (1). God would have us see them as His methods, His ways, and His tools.

Circumstances, whether they be mundane or high drama are gifts from God to us. Think about your life. It has been shaped and influenced by events never planned or anticipated. You read the Bible, pray, seek counsel and pursue God's will. You have godly dreams and desires. You start in a direction God has placed before you. You are full of hope in all God has promised. Then something falls apart. You didn't expect it, but it happened. It is at such a point that God would have us see beyond circumstances to the person he is forming us to be for eternity.

Walking before the Lord is not a straight upward path from new birth to glory. There are twists and turns. God brings to each of us unique blessings and trials. We do not pick them; God chooses them. It is through them that He causes us to bear His image. No earthly circumstance will last forever, but the person we allow God to make us through them will live in eternity with Him. Our focus needs to be on God and His purposes, not the tools He is using to accomplish them. When we grasp this, a freedom comes to face any situation, whether it seems pleasant or not. No matter what our circumstances, we can go through them thanking God for how it is bringing forth His image in us.

When we like our circumstances, thanksgiving and praise comes easily. When we don't, our vision gravitates to the natural. We complain, get discouraged have anxiety attacks. and question God. Life hurts and where is God anyway with His glorious promises?

He is there with you in that situation that hurts so much. His hand holds the tool that, while inflicting pain right now, will leave you in greater conformity to his dear Son. Cry out to Him. Tell Him about all your hurt and pain, but don't stop there. Stay in His presence long enough to thank Him for what He is doing even though you don't understand it. Worship Him. Sing songs of praise. Sing in the Spirit. It may take hours, days, weeks or months, but God will lift your vision. He will open your eyes to see it is all of Him, all birthed in His heart of love for you.

This circumstance will pass; others will come. Today and tomorrow you cry with a broken heart, but there is a third day, a day of resurrection. On that day you will see that God used the dark time to do what you could not do in your strength. He has caused more of Himself to be formed in you. New light and life flow out of that darkness. A new depth exists in your relationship with the Lord and your worship of Him. The circumstance may persist, but it doesn't matter now. You see the Lord in it; your eyes are on Him. In fact, you are thankful for that dark time because it brought you into a closer relationship with the Lord.

God is entrusting you with your circumstances. You may work in an office or stay at home, be a student at a university or Bible school, be unemployed, self-employed, retired, married, single, disabled, handicapped, have many friends or just a few. Over your lifetime, you will experience many things. Each and every circumstance with which God touches our lives is meant to bring us into His image for eternity.

God wants us to be encouraged, especially when our circumstances are difficult. He, as the potter, is shaping us, the clay, as seems best to Him. As we yield to His will and His working through the circumstances of our lives, there will be not only more of Him expressed through us in this life, but also the fullness of Christ's image in us for eternity.

(1) John Wright Follette, "Broken Bread" (Springfield: Gospel Publishing House, 1957), p.160.