"Yet you, Lord, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand." Isaiah 64:8 NIV
In the midst of many games at the local fair with prizes from stuffed animals and balls, to dying fish in small plastic bags, one particular prize caught a woman’s eye…
a green clay vase with natural flowers.
After what seemed to many onlookers as a crazy investment, the woman won her vase and took it home. The days passed and although the flowers had withered away, it was the vase that captivated the woman. So much so, that she decided to have the walls in her house painted the color of her vase and contacted many of the painters in her small town in an attempt to produce the color. One after the other, the painters would take the clay vase and in their studios would try and replicate the color.
When it was time to show their result each painter would be met by the stern lady’s comments “Its too light! Or too dark?…I don't know, but something is missing!”
The woman’s request gained fame around the city and a young painter asked if he could attempt the challenge. A day later the boy came with his result and people heard the news and gathered to see how he would react to the woman’s harsh response. Upon showing his result the woman screamed “Thats the one! It's perfect!” and had the boy paint the walls in her home.
Because of the newfound fame, the boy was able to build a successful painting company that years later was now giving to his oldest son.
“How did you do it dad, how did you make the exact color of the vase?”
“It’s a secret son, one that I can only tell you if you promise not to give it away.”
“Your secret is safe with me dad. Tell me!”
“You really want to know the secret?”
“Yes father im ready! How did you get the matching green color?”
“The secret is, that when I brought the vase to the studio…I painted the vase as well!”
The most effective way to neutralize a follower of Christ is to paint their hearts the same color of the walls that surround them. Your relationship with God is much more valuable than any prize you could win for yourself! But sometimes, certain people and circumstances that surround us, influence our relationship with Christ, adjusting it to themselves and our surroundings. If you are not careful, sometimes the staining threat of your hardships can taint what God is trying to do in you and with you.
It isn’t enough to know the color of a life in Christ by the wisdom of others alone. Your pastor does an important and necessary job (trust me I'm a pastor) but your personal relationship with God is not with the pastor but with God himself. Therefore, the best way to learn how your salvation gives your life color is to get to know the one who made the clay vase.
Prayer For Today
God we are ever so thankful, because while you are the King of the universe, you’ve chosen to dwell in me and have invite me to a genuine relationship. Help me find you in all the places of my life I have not searched. I want to know you not just from what I hear, but to see you in my life daily. Thank you because you are alway good, amen.
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