We are “C.L.A.Y. - Being Moulded” - 28 May 2009
Remember that beautiful china cup from Monday? Often God's way of producing His ‘fragrance’ is to take the cup off the shelf, break it, and pour out the fragrance. He releases the sweet ‘orange blossom’ fragrance of His grace only by cracking it. God is so passionate about moulding us into the image of His Son that He will use any tool to accomplish that work. He will use a pastor one day, a child the next, one day he may use a counsellor, the day after that a long time friend. He may use a crisis, an illness, a death or a celebration; he may use a film, a sad song or a joyful song of praise. He may use a dream, or a daydream. He may even use our sin, the way He did in David’s life, or a moment of betrayal, the way He did in Peter’s.
God is patient in making a masterpiece out of our lives, taking a lifetime if necessary (in my case I think that’s a certainty!). He is also persistent, he will stop at nothing, except our own unwillingness to cooperate, that is a boundary He has chosen not to cross. Tragic circumstances won’t stop Him, physical limitations won’t stop Him and even satanic opposition won’t stop Him.
It doesn’t matter if life has shattered us or some enemy or even if we have caused the shattering ourselves, God reaches down, picks up the pieces and uses them to make something beautiful. Re re-moulds us! How? God moulds us in the same way we mould clay — He uses water “For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, and floods on the dry ground; I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, and my blessing on your offspring.” Isaiah 44:3
God’s Spirit works in our mind as the tool that helps to mould our thoughts and attitudes to become like Him, he knows our strengths and growth areas as we allow Him to work in our lives. Similarly, our place within the Body of Christ is by His design and purpose (Romans 12:4-8). Apart from God’s Holy Spirit, we are simply what the acronym spells—CLAY, but with the indwelling of God’s Holy Spirit and our willingness to yield, God can mould us in the following ways with his living water:
C - Cleansing – we sin each day - lose all your guilty stains!
L - Live according to the Spirit - our spiritual mindset determines our walk.
A - Allows understanding – soak in his living water, go to the river and get in.
Y - Yields Fruit & Fragrance – Grow to be an ‘Orange Blossom Special’
The wonderful advantage of clay is that you can wipe out any mistakes and start again. However, in order to do so, the clay must always be kept moist. It is the same way with our minds, for God to mould us we must be connected with Him by stirring up the Holy Spirit within us, in this way God can continually work with us.
How is your pot? Are you a work in progress or are you huddling over it as you try to protect it? Have you placed it on a shelf trying to guard it? There is a better way, take it off the shelf and let God crack it; give your life into the Potter’s Hands. One of the martyrs in , Jim Elliot, wrote, "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." | 