The Potter & The Clay—The Beauty of Surrender
There’s something humbling about watching a potter at work.
The way their hands press into the clay, shaping and reshaping, smoothing out imperfections, bringing out the beauty hidden in what first looks like an unremarkable lump of earth.
It’s not random. It’s not careless. It’s intentional.
And so is God’s work in us.
Isaiah 64:8 reminds us:
“Yet you, Lord, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.”
I love this imagery because it reminds me that we are not expected to be perfect—only willing. A potter doesn’t discard clay because it’s flawed. If anything, a skilled potter knows how to take the imperfections and work them into something even stronger, even more meaningful.
That’s exactly what God does with us.
He takes our weaknesses—our struggles, our failures, our not-enough-ness—and He shapes them into something beautiful. The cracks in our character? He smooths them out. The places where we feel unfinished or unworthy? He fills them with His grace.
A potter doesn’t expect the clay to shape itself. It just has to remain in his hands—just surrender.
Trust the Process, Embrace the Journey
If you’ve ever felt like you’re stuck in the middle of something hard, uncertain, or uncomfortable—good news: you’re in process.
That stretching, that refining, that feeling of being undone? It’s not for nothing. The Potter is at work. He sees the masterpiece before it’s finished.
And here’s the best part: God doesn’t just work around our weaknesses—He works through them.
Paul puts it this way in 2 Corinthians 12:9:
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
God isn’t looking for perfect people—He’s looking for surrendered people.
People who trust that He can take whatever feels broken or unfinished and make something purposeful out of it.
I was thinking about all of this when designing something special for February—The Potter & The Clay: The Surrender Bracelet.
A bracelet that tells a story—of surrender, of refining, of the patient work of the Potter.
Just like in pottery, there’s a moment when the raw clay—soft, moldable, unfinished—meets the fire and is transformed into something strong and complete. There’s a moment when the mess of color and texture begins to take shape into something beautiful. And there’s a moment when an empty space, a cutout, reveals something more—a symbol, a reminder of the deeper work happening beneath the surface.
This bracelet is designed to reflect all of that.
(Look for an email with more details coming tomorrow (Monday 2/3/25)! Stay tuned… 😉)
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