You Are A Cracked Pot

My father-in-law was in a pottery store years ago. He had stepped in and was admiring the works that the potter had made. One particular piece caught his eye. It was set back behind the counter and had a peculiar design in its finish.

We have all seen pottery. Normally the finished product is not very elaborate. It doesn’t normally have intricate designs. The painting is usually simple. Some pieces can be very beautiful, but normally it is done in simplicity. However, this piece had a very intricate design, with lines running throughout the piece. It was truly beautiful. Of course, he asked the clerk about it. How did the artist create such a finish? How did the artist paint those lines? How long did it take?

The clerk simply walked over and plugged in a light that had been placed inside the piece of pottery. When she plugged it in, an amazing thing happened. From out of every line, light began to shine through. The piece of pottery began to glow as the light that was inside shone out of every little crack in its surface.

My father-in-law said it was the most amazing piece of art he had ever seen. No one could tell that it was cracked. The cracks were so tiny they did not seem to be cracks at all. Only when the light was turned on could they be seen.

Several things had to be done to achieve the effect in this particular piece of pottery. First, the potter had to heat the kiln hotter than he normally would. Second, he had to leave the piece in the kiln longer than he normally would. Third, he had to pay closer attention to the piece than he normally would. He could only leave the piece in the kiln so long at that heat, or it would be destroyed. However, if done right, the result of the fire and the length of time spent in the fire would produce a masterpiece.

I could go on to build your sermon for you, but I think you can all figure out the typology in this one. God bless.

A Little Thought

My sister, Karla, was here visiting this week and was talking to our 4 year old granddaughter, Alayna. They played "make-believe" for quite awhile and then Karla asked Alayna if she still worshipped the Lord in church and danced, and shouted. Alayna said "YES I DO" and I raise my hands too. Karla then asked her how she raised her hands and Alayna said "I raise BOTH of them, but some people just raise ONE hand." Karla said, "They do? How come they just raise one hand? Alayna answered, "I guess they just don't have very much to give to God!" And......we don't think children are observing us in church? So many times we are so involved in our own world and do not give God everything He deserves. Children take note of our lack of commitment in worship and praise. We really do need to watch what we "DO" and what we "DO NOT DO"! Someone is walking in our footprints and it just might be a CHILD!