Friday, November 8, 2013

" . . . we are the clay . . . ."

"But now, O Lord,
You are our Father,
We are the clay, and You our potter;
And we are the work of Your hand."
Isaiah 64:8
 
 
 
 
Jenny painted this clay pot for me 14 years ago this past July.  Although she did not cast the pot she did, however, have a hand in the finished product.  I loved it.  It had bird houses around the pot with a scripture verse along the rim.  It no longer exists.  On Wednesday I asked Bob to bring down Itty Bitty's dresser drawers at his convenience so I could change out her summer clothes for winter ones.  (I'm just a little behind here)  I had the pot sitting at the foot of the stairs in a wicker pot holder.  He didn't clear it when he came down and the corner of one of the drawers caught it and sent the basket and the pot flying.  He offered to save the pieces, but it was beyond repair.  It would have taken a master to fit all those tiny pieces back, fill in the gap where the clay disintegrated and paint it back the way it was.  There was nothing he could do to make it perfect again.  It was beyond his ability.
 

I  have seen a few broken pots in my day.  Some beyond repair like my pot.  Some with just minor cracks and a chip or two ~ nothing that would affect its ability to do as it should.  And some that had just a broken piece that could easily be mended.  Not perfect as before, but almost unnoticeable.  I was free to choose to keep them or just toss them in the landfill.  Depending.  Depending on how badly broken they were.


We are different than the clay posts cast on an assembly line. Slight imperfections can be overlooked and will get labeled as "seconds".  Less impressive they are, but they can beautifully adorned so those imperfections would never be noticed.  Covered by paint or stain or some other artistic medium.  But their overall structure may be weak and vulnerable to everyday use.    
 
But us, we are perfectly cast by the Potter's hands. Just as Jenny's pot is signed, we each have the Potter's stamp somewhere on us or in us!   Even those that mankind may see as "seconds" or "culls" were deliberately and perfectly made.  We were made to withstand everyday use.  Not to buckle or bend under normal circumstances, and even when dilemmas challenge us, we are equipped to carry the weight.   
 

It is when an outside force, one unexpected, perhaps much stronger, takes advantage of us that we may become the broken vessel that may appear totally destroyed.  Broken beyond repair.  Left to be claimed by the garbage truck, tossed in the landfill of life.  That may be what the human eye sees.  But the Potter knows His handiwork. He knows the strength of the clay He used.  He knows repair is possible, even likely.  He is gracious like that.  He allows the observer to see not only the original piece of work, but the repair of the damaged vessel.  It is an amazing thing to see a broken vessel heal right before you eyes.  It is nothing short of a miracle.  A miraculous gift from an amazing Potter.

I am glad my Potter is not of this world.  I'm glad to know I would be doted over like a small child should I become broken. I'm glad to know my Potter will fix exactly what needs to be fixed. I'm glad I don't have to depend solely on my fellow man to fix all my cracks and dings and missing pieces, although they surely would if they could.   And if my vessel were to become so damaged that repair is beyond the question, well, then, I might just be dancing in Glory with a new, perfect body!
 

Thursday, November 7, 2013

A Look Back at October Through Pictures . . . . .

I thought September flew by, but boy, oh boy, October was a blur!  Maybe it had something to do with the fact that I was gone for a third of the month.  Maybe it's just old age.  At any rate, it was here and gone before I could flip the page on the calendar!

So, here, in some cases in a blur, is October thru pics:


Only an Itty Bitty could stack a wobbly tower and not have it fall.
How does she do that?

We celebrated a birthday.

I finally deflated Dora after four plus months of
hanging around!  I've never seen a Mylar last this long.  It
was for Itty Bitty's birthday in May!

This was the original reason I was to be in the Land of Horses at the end of October.
Band Competition.

This is Hope doing her hoop thing ;)> .  She is going to be talented
like her older sister!
This is Sarah's Senior year in HS.  This was her last Guard competition.
Bittersweet.  That is her in the dress.
She had the solo part this year.
 She enters a portal to a different realm,
 only to become part of their world ~ for just a short time.
She was fabulous with the rifle!
"Should I leave?  No . . . I'll stay just a bit longer."


 
This is the reason I arrived a week early!  How can you say "No." to these little faces?  How?

Give me my heart back!  Now!
Never mind.  You may keep it.
 
Snug as a bug with his binky!
And cute little chapped cheeks, to boot!
 
Never too big for an exer-saucer!
L. O. V. E.   Nothing less.
Back home in time for Trick or Treating.
Our 80's gal, our Jelly Fish and an Itty Bitty Cow!
 


Dare I even say it's November?  How could it go any quicker?  Um, don't answer that!  PTL for cameras ~ even tho I'm a lousy photographer I get to keep the memories.  At least pictures don't fly by at break neck speed!  I can, at least, linger over them ~ well, for two minutes or so. 

Let's wait and see how November pans out.  Can I get a worthy post or two in before the end of the month?  Or is this a sign of things to come?

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i'm a wife, a mom, a mom-mom, a sister, an aunt, a cousin, a friend...i'm a child of God.... i love to read, scrap, and sew (all when time permits!)... i like trying new things, going to different places, even if only in my mind....i like simple, but life is complicated....i like spring days, snow storms, thunderstorms, and big puffy clouds you can make things out of....i like coffee, tea and iced chocolate milk you can sip thru a straw..........