Lessons from a Potter
Photo by Anne Nygård on Unsplash
Yes, I am a potter.
A person who creates one-of-a-kind vessels out of clay, many times utilizing a pottery wheel.
My love for throwing on a wheel began as I unassumingly enrolled in a Ceramics class during my sophomore year of college. Thinking this would be a fun way to earn credits, I quickly realized how challenging it is to master the skills involved, and how many steps it takes to complete a masterpiece. The experienced potters made it look so easy!
Through hours of instruction and practice, I was amazed at how the clay responded to the slightest touch of my fingers as I slowly raised the walls of a mug from a lump of wet clay. After several other steps and weeks later, I felt so proud to hold that mug, knowing I created it from nothing.
Yesterday…
Our Pastor preached from Jeremiah 18, which reminded me of several spiritual lessons I’ve learned through this act of creating.
Jeremiah 18:1-6
“This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: “Go down to the potter’s house, and there I will give you my message.” So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. 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.
Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, “Can I not do with you, Israel, as this potter does?” declares the Lord. “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, Israel.”
Lesson 1: I am clay in my Father’s hands
He “created my inmost being” and “knit me together in my mother’s womb” (Psalm 139:13), but His creativity doesn’t stop there. He continues to hold me in His hands, forming me into the unique vessel He has designed me to be, for every season of my life.
While life may cause some bumps and bruises…a marring…along the way, when we stay in the Creator’s hands, He gently rubs out those imperfections with His love, grace and healing touch.
Lesson 2: The ball of clay must be perfectly centered
No matter what type or size of vessel the Potter is planning to create, the most crucial first step is to center the clay on the wheel. This takes patience, strength, determination…and just the right amount of pressure and water…to force the clay into the right position. Centered.
If the clay is not perfectly centered, it will become very obvious as the Potter begins to pull up the walls of the vessel. Even the slightest off-centeredness, will cause the walls to not be uniform in width, resulting in a wobbly mess.
The clay must then be wadded up and kneaded into just the right consistency to then be thrown again.
Have you ever felt wobbly, like life was out of balance, even out of control?
I definitely have. From my experience, the ONLY way to get back in balance is to invest time in the presence of our Creator: reading His Word, worshipping, praying, fasting, quality and quantity time alone with God.
What this looks like…the how, when, and where…is different for everyone. Try different ways to find what works for you. The important thing is to just do it.
I’ve found that being in His Presence gets my focus back on Him (rather than myself), re-aligns my priorities, brings clarity and peace of heart and mind. While my circumstances may have not changed, my heart and mind are CENTERED on Him, bringing calm and balance.
Lesson 3: The clay must be wet in order to be moldable
Several years ago, I was helping lead a women’s encounter weekend retreat. During one of the sessions, Holy Spirit brought something into the light…an unconfessed sin… that was hindering my growth and relationship with Him. My eyes were opened and I cried as I repented of my sin.
I’ll never forget what Holy Spirit spoke so gently into my heart: “Your tears of repentance are what keeps your heart soft and moldable in my hands.”
Our Father knows how damaging a dry piece of clay is. If not kept wet throughout the throwing process, it becomes rigid and will not conform to the potter’s hands. It literally fights against the potter, resisting every move of the potter, resisting to stay balanced. It cannot become what the potter intended to make it into.
So it is with our lives. If we allow unconfessed sin to be hidden in our hearts, this will cause our hearts to become hard and unmoldable, resulting in bitterness, anger, doubt, impatience, lack of love, and damaged or broken relationships with others and God.
Unconfessed sin can be as subtle as repeating gossip, not forgiving that friend who hurt me, judging others, canceling those who think differently than me, or robbing time from my employer.
Or more obvious sins, such as promiscuity, lust, shoplifting, abusing alcohol or drugs, lying, hating.
For me, sex before marriage, which led to abortion, were unconfessed sins that kept me bound for 15 years. I was limiting what God could do in my life by keeping these hidden secrets. I even built a wall around my heart, convincing myself that I couldn’t let it go. Couldn’t forgive myself.
The good news? Our Potter didn’t pick me up and toss me in the trash, giving up on me. He lovingly instructed me through His Spirit, His Word, and others in my life, shedding light on that darkness and gave me an opportunity to fully embrace His forgiveness and grace.
Psalm 51: 1-3 and 7
I love how David repented (many experts believe this was after the prophet Nathan came to him, revealing David’s “hidden” sin of committing adultery with Bathsheba).
Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
blot out my transgressions.
Wash away all my iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin.
For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is always before me.
Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
David’s repentance softened his heart, allowing our Father to continue to mold him as a man after God’s own heart.
To keep our hearts soft and moldable, let’s be honest before God, asking Him to search us and know us, to see if there be any wicked way within us. (Psalm 139: 23-24) When something is revealed, ask for forgiveness from the Lord (and others if necessary), then let it go.
Lesson 4: A created piece must go through a firing process.
A potter may throw the most beautiful of vessels, perfectly symmetrical, with just the right consistency and shape, but if that piece doesn’t go through a firing at extremely high temperatures, it will be fragile, easily cracked or broken, and unusable. The firing changes the clay back into rock or ceramic, making it very strong and durable, ready to be used for it’s intended purpose.
Danielle McDaniel, master potter, teacher and author, wrote, “Did you know that ceramic is the only material on earth that does not disintegrate? What if you said yes to a difficult process, but in the end, you knew after going through this process the result would be…to always be? What if you could understand that this would not break you down but strengthen you? What if the difficulty that is sometimes placed in front of you was the very thing that made you, you?
The clay fires in the kiln and comes out stronger, lasting, and ready to be used. As it is in the firing…it is in life…that we all have trial by fire. But it is the fire that creates our strength.” (1)
Can you see the parallel in our own lives? The fires we go through are actually changing us on the inside, making us stronger for the next season in our lives.
As we reflect…
Does one of these lessons resonate with you? I would love to hear your feedback, and even lessons you have learned through pottery or some other creative expression. Feel free to share your thoughts by commenting below or sending us a message here.
One last thought…
“The goal of pottery is the goal of life: To make your inside and outside match.” (2)
Let’s keep learning and growing together.
Written by Debbie Shultz
Founder, Embracing Grace After Abortion
Author, Unrobing the Shame: One Couple’s Healing Journey After Abortion,
Surrendering the Secret Facilitator
Sources: