HE IS SHAPING ME AS IT SEEMS BEST TO HIM - II

The Israelites kept disobeying God and kept prostituting themselves to idols of foreign gods. They kept sinning and walking in evil ways. So do we. We keep going in our own sinful ways and prostitute ourselves to the evil desires of our hearts: hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambitions and the like (Galatians 5:19-21).

But God never changes. Just the way He sent Jeremiah to carry His message of loving kindness and forgiveness, He speaks to us even today and everyday through the same scripture as given above. The message is not about we being at His mercy, when indeed we are but it is about His love and kindness that surpasses everything.

The potter was making a pot but it was marred in his hands. What did the potter do next? A bit of pottery might help here. While a pot is being formed at the wheel, the joints and axles must be tightened and they must function properly otherwise the wheel wobbles and the pot is deformed. As far as the clay is concerned, it should be kneaded properly before putting it on the wheel. The potter never intentionally damages the pot because he will either have to throw away the clay or go through the tedious process of kneading it again before making a new pot out of it. In the illustration from the Bible, the potter doesn’t throw the clay away but goes through the process of making it again.

Even today, His unfailing love is still the same. We judge our success and our prosperity according to world standards. In this mad race, we forget that God’s standards are not world standards. If it were the same, Christ wouldn’t have had to die and there would be nothing called Christianity. Christianity is not a religion but a lifestyle and a relationship. It is the relationship between man and his heavenly father and that’s why we cry, “Abba, Father.” (Romans 8:15)

Through this scripture portion from the book of Jeremiah, God calls us to give up our old sinful ways and trust Him. God loves us so much that good is not good enough. The Word of God says, “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.” Jeremiah 18:4. Once we get back to Him, He doesn’t just remodel us to be of some use but He makes us as it seems best to Him. Even when God created the Universe and everything contained in it, the Word of God says, “And God saw that it was good.” (Genesis 1:10,12,18,21,25). After God created man and woman, God saw all that He had made, and it was very good. (Genesis 1:31) But according to the promise through Jeremiah 18:4, He is going to make you the best if you return to Him. O’ what a great news! Yes, God loves you and has wonderful plans for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future, if only you let Him work in you. God bless you!!!

HE IS SHAPING ME AS IT SEEMS BEST TO HIM - I

The word of God came to me when I was very depressed and going through a very difficult phase of my life. The message was the same as it came to Jeremiah in the book of Jeremiah, chapter 18 and verses 1 through 10. I would like to first read the verse out to you so that you gain more insight as you go through this piece of writing.

Jeremiah 18: 1-10: 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: “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter does?” declares the LORD. “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, and if that nation I warned, repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned. And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, and if it does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it.

As I ponder into the great and unimaginable goodness of GOD, I always delight and feel blessed to have made that one most important decision in my life, to accept Jesus Christ as my personal Saviour.

Earlier the Word of God from Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you”, declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future,” didn’t hold so much meaning and comfort as it does now when I understand much better the illustration and message from Jeremiah 18:1-10.

God works miraculously in the lives of people and especially in the lives of those who trust Him. Isn’t it a miracle that we are alive when thousands around us are dying each day due to wars, accidents, diseases, etc? When I look at the things around me I can’t help but marvel at the wonderful ways in which God works. God’s love is so wonderful and still so wonderful because He loves us even though many a times we fail to love and obey Him. The Word of God says in Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us”.