The Potter and the Clay
“But now, O Lord, you are our Father we are the clay, and you are our potter we are all the work of your hand.” Isaiah 64:8
What is that verse saying?
Jesus taught us to pray: "Our Father, who art in Heaven..." (Matthew 6:9) The Lord, God Almighty, is our Father! In our God we find the hope that each of His children hold deep in their heart: we shall not perish, but have everlasting life because Father God paid the ultimate price for our eternal life. (John 3:16) Notice that Jesus instructed us to pray “Our Father who art in Heaven” & not just Father who art in Heaven”. It would have been just as true if He had said Father but Jesus wanted to assure His disciples that God was a Father to them as well. This assurance also applies to Jesus’ followers today because we are His spiritual brothers & sisters! Isn’t that awesome! The Biblical image of God is one that represents Him as a loving Father. This is especially true in the teachings of Christ which refer to Him as "Father" no less than 160 times!
God the Father loves His children. In Jesus Christ, God showed all of His children that He loves us with an infinite, unimaginable amount of love. Our Savior paid that ultimate price to demonstrate the magnitude & the quality of His love! Yes, it is a great revelation & a great privilege to call our All-Powerful Lord God, "Father."
As we focus our thoughts today about the absolute fact that our God is also our "Father," let us take a moment to affirm in our own minds that our God, who is in Heaven, is also our own, personal Father! If it is true to you, that because of your personal relationship with Christ, God is your loving Father, then say the words to yourself silently in your mind: "God is my Father."
The apostle John also wrote that those who believe in & have faith in Christ are God’s children. John 1:12 tells us, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,” Because of our relationship with Jesus we are God’s children!
If in your heart you know God is your Father, then strengthen your faith in this fact & speak that truth to yourself a couple more times: "God is my Father." "God is my Father." Think about that. "God is my Father!" What a blessing that is!
Don’t most parents want to shape, or mold, their children into the people they want them to be? Parents want their kids to be honest, righteous, people with Christian personalities & characteristics. The parent is the potter molding the children as the clay. God is our Father & we are His clay!
Now let’s dig into this message. Here we find the meat & potatoes of what it means that we are the children of the Infinite, Almighty God. We are putty in the hands of the only One qualified to shape us into who we should be! Our destiny is held in the hands of our Creator! He is the potter & we are the clay. Were we the ones who formed ourselves in our mother's womb? No, it was Father God. Were we the ones who gave us talents, wit, emotions, & resources? No, it was our Father God who did that. We are not the ones who directed our circumstances, our experiences, & the details of our relationships in our lives. Again, it was our Father God who did this. Father God is the One who sustains us, guides us, & provides for us every day. We cannot do these things for ourselves! He is the potter. We are a hopeless lump of clay when it comes to our own origin, our own destiny, & our own eternity. He is the Potter & we are the clay.
Give out Play-Doh & give them a few minutes to make something with it.
When the Play-Doh you are molding into an object doesn’t turn out the way you wanted it to what do you do with it? Do you throw away the clump of Play-Doh or do you reimagine what you wanted it to be & put pressure on it to reform it into what you wanted?
God does the same thing when His clay doesn’t come out like He wanted. He takes the time to reimagine it & to mold it into what He wanted.
We are the work of Father God’s hands! Look at your hands. That's right, look at your own hands. What have your hands made, what have your hands done or made that God did not have a part in? Nothing. It is God's hands that we yield to for our origin, our destiny & our very being! God gave you the creative ability to make what you just made out of your Play-Doh clay.
Let us as His trusting, obedient children, soft & moldable clay in His hands, raise our hearts to Him for His fashioning, for His molding, & for His loving care! We can trust Him. What He does in your life, the circumstances He leads you to, the experiences He allows you to enjoy...or endure...are all there to mold, guide, correct, & encourage you. God loves you so much!
We don’t need to fight to make everything & everyone around us be what we want them to be. We need not try to always have our own way. We can rest, we can trust, & we can rely on the hands of the Potter...for we are only clay. We are happiest, we are the most fulfilled, & we are the most productive when we surrender our selfish desires & let God have His own way.
Share story about how God remolded me to be the evangelist I am today. Tell them to think about how God has molded them in their lives & ask the group for examples of ways our Heavenly Father shaped them into the people they became.
There is a hymn that describes God as the potter & we as His clay. This hymn even uses the terms potter and clay in the lyrics. Some of you might know which hymn I’m referring to. The title of that hymn is Have Thine Own Way, Lord. Would you like to hear the story behind the writing of that hymn?
Adelaide Pollard was forty-five years old when she visited a prayer meeting in 1907, where she was inspired to write her most famous hymn. It was a simple phrase from a simple but sincere prayer that impressed her. When an elderly woman was asked to offer her prayer, she omitted the usual requesting of the Lord to shower blessings on her & others in the group. Instead, she told God that it did not matter to her what He brought into their lives, but "Just have your own way with us". When Adelaide left the prayer meeting that night the phrase from that prayer, "Have Thine own way", kept running through her mind. On the way home she formed the lyrics in her head & before going to bed that night, she wrote the words down on paper.
Shortly after the song was written, George Stebbins set the words to music, & "Have Thine Own Way, Lord," was born; all because of a simple phrase in a simple prayer.
Pass Out Lyrics to Have Thine Own Way, Lord
Have Thine Own Way, Lord!
Verse 1
Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way! Thou art the potter, I am the clay;
Mold me and make me after Thy will, While I am waiting, yielded and still.
Verse 2
Have Thine own way Lord! Have Thine own way! Search me and try me Master today!
Whiter than snow, Lord, wash me just now, As in Thy presence humbly I bow.
Verse 3
Have Thine own way Lord! Have Thine own way! Wounded and weary, help me I pray!
Power all power surely is Thine! Touch me and heal me, Savior divine.
Verse 4
Have Thine own way Lord! Have Thine own way! Hold o’er my being absolute sway!
Fill with Thy spirit, till all shall see Christ only always, living in me.
Christ only always, living in me.
Singalong
See your Heavenly Father's gentle hand in your life. Feel His loving touch in your heart! Hear His sweet voice of comfort & care deep inside. Sing to Him in your heart of hearts, "Have Thine own way, Lord." Talk to Him. He knows your voice. Seek His face. He hears your cry. Call His name. His name is Father. He is here now & He loves you!
Ask them to sum up what we have been talking about in this study. What are a few things have we learned today?
Closing Prayer:
Dear Heavenly Father, as I stand before You today, I humbly ask for You to share your will with me. Please help me understand the unique path You have laid out for me, Father God. Guide my steps & illuminate my heart so I may walk confidently in the direction You have intended for me.
I trust that Your divine plan for my life is far greater than anything I could dream of. Thank You for revealing my purpose & aligning my life with Your will. I am grateful, Father, for the certainty that comes from knowing I am on the path You’ve set for me. With all of my heart I ask you to have Your own way with me, Lord. For it’s in the precious Name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
