Back to School

Pause

For most of us, a new school year has begun. A time when we come back and see old friends we haven’t seen for a while. We have changed, many times physically, emotionally, and maybe even spiritually. We have been changed by summer experiences and relationships of which only we know.

What was your summer like?

How have you been changed?

Let us now listen for where God meets us in these changes.

Listen

But now, Lord, you are our father. We are the clay, and you are our potter. All of us are the work of your hand.

Isaiah 64:8

Think

Have you ever worked with clay and a pottery wheel? I have. In fact, I took a class my senior year in college, hopeful that with a little practice, I would be throwing out amazing vases and bowls; however, all I made were glorified paperweights. It ended up being my lowest grade in college.

You see, there is a lot of patience that goes with making an amazing vase. Sometimes you get hard clay that doesn’t want to form. As the clay turns on the wheel, the potter’s small movements can make major dents in the vase.

That is why I love this image of God being a potter. God holds us and forms us through all the experiences and relationships of our lives to make us the person that God calls us to be. These are all slow, small changes that we have to be open to also. We have to be moldable clay.

Randall Curtis

Pray

Lord, thank you for molding me. Help me to be open to new experiences and new relationships. Amen.

Go

Before you go from this place, take a deep breath.

Open your heart to the possibilities that come from change.

Have no fear.

Rest in the assurance that God is with you, wherever the way may lead you.