"Reaction To The Fire"

"Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels".  Jeremiah 18:3

 

Recently, I had the opportunity to go to a girl's night out where we got to make a piece of pottery.  I had a wonderful time making and learning about the process of turning a lump of clay into a beautiful object.  The lady (Gwen) who hosted the night out was so knowledgeable and interesting.  She shared many things about working with the clay that I had never known.

 

The one thing that she taught us that amazed me the most is what I want to share with you this morning.  After the pottery piece has dried you put a glaze/color on it.  Gwen showed us several pieces of pottery that were completely finished to help us pick out the glaze/color that we wanted to use on our piece.  What amazed me was the fact that she showed us several pieces that were the same and had been painted with the same glaze color yet they did not look the same.  The color was the same but when they were finished they looked like they had been done with two different colors.  After you put the glaze/color on you put the piece in the kiln and fire it until the color bakes into the clay.  Gwen explained to us that the reason the color looked different was because of how the piece reacted to the fire.  It was the fire that brought out each one's own unique color.

 

I thought about Jesus being the Master Pottery and we are the clay.  He is making you into a vessel of honor.  How you "look" in the end depends on how you come through the "fire".  The fire I am referring to are the trials and situations we go through.  Didn't Job say that when he was tried he would come forth as gold? (Job 23:10)  How is gold purified-- in the fire.  

 

Don't fear the fire. Don't shrug back from the trials.  Just like the fiery kiln at the potter's house produces the beautiful colors of the clay vessel, the fire of trials, tribulations, afflictions, etc. are producing in you the beautiful colors of God's plan for your life.  He is making you into a vessel that will glorify Him.  Like the pieces of pottery that Gwen showed us each one is unique.  No two were alike although they had each been painted with the same glaze and gone through the same fire.  You may face the same trials as someone else but how you respond to them will determine how you look in the end.  How you "react" to the fire will make you unique from anyone else. 

 

Have a great day.  The fire is what brings out the beautiful colors of God's plan for us.  How you react to the fire determines your uniqueness.

 

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell
and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from 
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