Recently I was reading Romans, and Paul wrote something that sparked a question in my mind and I really want to share the thought with you, and hopefully get your answer too [would love to connect with you in the comments below].
Romans 9:20 MSG Who in the world do you think you are to second-guess God? Do you for one moment suppose any of us knows enough to call God into question? Clay doesn’t talk back to the fingers that mold it, saying, “Why did you shape me like this?” Isn’t it obvious that a potter has a perfect right to shape one lump of clay into a vase for holding flowers and another into a pot for cooking beans?
The question that sparked in my mind, “If I were clay, what would I choose to be?”
Paul clearly says that we cannot question the potter, and I’m totally okay with that, because I completely trust God’s design. There are no faults in God’s designs – and although we may see ourselves as flawed, God loves every flaw because that’s how He created us.
But, I did get a bit caught up thinking, if I had a choice, what would I be, a vase for holding flowers or a pot for cooking beans?
On first thought, I was immediately drawn to the thought of being a pot for cooking beans. A vessel for a life of work [hard-work], able to withstand heat [and not just once, but repeatedly], created for transformation, not easily broken and designed for a lifetime of purpose - used everyday, in different ways, but with the same purpose because that is in my intentional design.
I wouldn’t be opposed to being a vase for holding flowers, an object of simplicity, designed to be filled and able to fill a room with beauty and fragrance.
I think the reason God doesn’t give us a choice of which we get to be is because as clay we are molded into each of these purposes interchangeably. There are moments in life when we need to be durable and withstand the fire around us; but there are also moments in life when we get to simply be available to be used for a purpose that may seem purposeless to us.
Now, more than ever, I am thankful that I am not in control of what my life is created to be. I am thankful that I don’t need to second-guess God’s design. I am thankful that I am formed into exactly what I need to be, and that each day is a moment to be shaped by the potter, as I choose to be malleable clay in His hands. I am thankful that my life doesn’t look anything like what I thought it would because if it did, I wouldn’t be equipped for the life God is carefully and creatively designing for me.
I hope that when you are asked the question; if I were clay, what would I choose to be; that your immediate response is; whatever God chooses for me to be, for this moment, but also for the future.
God’s designs are so intentional, there isn’t a single crease that isn’t intentionally worked into the beauty that is created in His designs.
May your life forever be a work of progress in the capable hands of God!
JCS
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