Cracked Pots!

Humans are like clay pots that are broken; we are imperfect but yet God seeks us to use in spite of our flaws. In ancient times people looked for damaged vessels, that were primarily used to carry water, because they made the best lanterns – the cracks allowed a candle to shine through and light their way at night! I love this! Let me share a story with you that means so much to me.

Once upon a time there was a servant man whose job was to bring water from the stream to his Master's house. The man carried the water from the stream in two clay pots. He hung the pots on each end of a pole, which he carried across his shoulders, to and from the stream many times a day.

One of the clay pots was perfect in every way for its purpose. The other pot was exactly like the first one, but it had a crack in it and it leaked. When the water bearer reached his Master's house, the perfect pot was always full, and the cracked pot was always half full.

The perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, and it boasted loudly. It criticized the cracked pot for its failures, and reminded it that despite his efforts, the water bearer could only deliver half a pot of water due to his cracks. The poor cracked pot was ashamed of its imperfections, and was miserable that it could only accomplish half of what it was supposed to do.

One day the cracked pot spoke to the water bearer. "I want to apologize to you. Because of my cracked side I've only been able to deliver half of the water to your Master's home, and you don't get the full value from your efforts."The water bearer smiled at the cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, "As we return to the Master's house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path."

Indeed as they climbed the path from the river to the Master's mansion the cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful flowers along one side of the path, and his world felt somewhat brighter. But when they reached their destination and the water in the half-empty pot was poured out, his sadness returned. "Thank you for trying to cheer me up with the beautiful flowers, water bearer," The pot spoke. " But I still must apologize for my failure."

The water bearer said, "Dear pot, you haven't understood what I was trying to show you. Did you notice that the flowers only grew on your side of the path? That's because of your flaw. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and everyday as we walked from the stream, the water that leaks from your pot has watered them. I could have gotten a new pot, but my daily journeys wouldn't be near as enjoyable and I look forward to gathering the flowers daily because it adds such beauty to the Master's table."

Ohhhh how we all long to be something of beauty in the eyes of our Master, but the weight of sin and trials of life have left us frail and in need of mending. It is in this state that Jesus carefully chooses us and takes us as we are. With tender loving care He dusts us off, seeing great potential. He trusts us with himself and fills us with however much that we allow. He sees the gaps and brokeness and despite our insecurities uses us as containers to shine through and to flow out of. It is when we are willing holders of the glory of God that we are truly the happiest and most fulfilled because it is what we were created for.

"But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us."                                                               2 Corinthians 4:7

Let's Sparkle!
--Jonna

*Out of Gas Again!

⇾God trying to get our attention and speak to us sometimes can be a whole lot like running out of gas. Ask me about how I know. It has happened to me many times (to my husbands dismay). The high-tech console on my dashboard warns me that there are 30 miles left of gas and I quickly figure in my head about how many miles there is to my destination versus the nearest gas station. A few more miles down the road a bright red light flashes next to the fuel gauge again reminding me that my car is in dire need of sustenance! Then a few minutes later a bell softly chimes again trying to gain my attention while I chat on the phone or sing loudly with my favorite CD. Suddenly with total shock and awe I am dumbfounded that my engine is no longer running! I press on the gas and nothing happens. I steer hastily to safety to the side of the road with my heart pounding and panic-stricken at my dilemma!! What can be wrong? How can this be happening to me with no warning? And most importantly....who is going to rescue me?

A whole lot of times God gets a bad rap for our inability to see or hear His voice warning us or guiding us the right way. We know there is a problem but most of us try to solve things in our own time frame and within our own abilities....therein is where the issue lies. Jeremiah 29:11 is one of my favorite passages expressing the plan God has for our lives and it is all for good. But as we are on this ride of life we are so busy doing and being what we feel God wants us to do that we ignore the gentle signs, voices and reminders that are to help us navigate successfully. I truly believe that God does not "give us what we can handle but He helps us handle what we are given". Which gives us a whole new meaning to "Jesus take the wheel!".

God talks to his children in so many ways. He uses his Word and goes into great detail to show us how to act and how to treat others. He uses people to speak into our life as well and to sharpen each other....often times by rubbing each other the wrong way! Our sometimes lengthy lessons are also another way we can hear God's voice and see Him at work and as Joyce Meyer often says, "There is no such thing as a drive-thru break through." Often times when we are contemplating a decision and we don't have 'peace about it' it is actually the Holy Spirit trying to communicate and get our attention. Audible voice is yet another way God chooses to speak and sometimes I'm  surprised He doesn't holler at me! Thankfully His mercy and grace are new every day!

Of course out of all the ways I wish God would speak to me about my life would be in a burning bush like Moses experienced in Exodus while minding his own business, I might actually pay attention then! But unfortunately we have to learn to shut our mouths, turn off the music and distractions and listen to the still, small voice that is there directing, guiding and encouraging us to greatness. We have to take responsibility for what we put or don't put in the "tanks of our lives" so that we have the time to spend with our creator to learn His voice and His ways. Because if we don't get the adequate dose of the word and prayer time that is needed to fuel us we will find ourselves crying out to be rescued continually and on the side of the road of life wondering how we got there. Just a thought =D

--Jonna

Your Canvas

There is nothing more beautiful, yet more intimidating than a blank canvas. The emptiness, the purity, the possibility of it all, makes a painter both glad, and fearful! What can i do or what can i create is the question! Artists love blank canvases! I used to watch my mom oil paint and she would get a new canvas and just stare at it for a long time at different angles moving it around before ever placing any paint on it. It fascinated me because she was seeing something that I couldn't see. 

I am sure you have heard of the world-famous work of art called the Mona Lisa that was painted by the great Leonardo da Vinci. The painting is in fact so priceless that it is not even insured because the value for the painting cannot be assigned a number; it is inestimable. The Mona Lisa incredibly enough is displayed in a $7.5 million room of her own at the Louvre in Paris, France! I personally do not think this painting is nice or even pretty...what actually determines it's value in this world is the artist who created it. 

Even a priceless painting like the Mona Lisa cannot compare to your own worth. Nothing on this earth that has been or ever will be created can match the worth of you! Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” You are a masterpiece created by the greatest artist ever! Some days you may not feel like a masterpiece or may not even be treated as a masterpiece. However, the original artist knows exactly how incredibly valuable you are. Your worth is not determined by how you feel, how people see you, where you come from, how much money you make, how well you perform at certain tasks, how beautiful you are or any other outside factors. You see, you have already been bought with a high price. The ultimate price. Romans 5:8 says, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Your worth is and forever will be untouchable but He doesn't want us kept in a private gallery shut out from the world. Some people leave their canvas empty because of fear....they want to keep their life and choices secret. Some have minimum brush strokes on them...they know how to act, what to say & how to look....they are copies or what thy call "prints"....not originals and not out on display. Our life canvas was meant to be filled, colorful and to be out in public. In order to be a light to the World we have to be willing to share our story...the good & bad. To be willing to show the places where we made mistakes and had to repaint or repair; the tears, pains, victories, failures and the things that make us laugh or cry. Our canvases were meant to get dirty. Not with the grime and smudges that I had before, but with the testimony of our life.
 

The “original artist” has His signature all over you. His fingerprints leave an imprint over every canvas he breathes his life into. And interestingly enough the Mona Lisa is not signed or dated like most famous paintings and it's said to be Leonardo's favorite. Since it's first public display around the 1530's it has been stolen, damaged by acid by an angry visitor, hit by rocks, faded by too much cleaning, warped and cracked by years of exposure to humidity and the elements. But still the painting is priceless and millions flock to Paris every year to catch a glimpse of the revered painting sitting in it's home encapsulated in bullet proof glass. How much more does our Father value us....His creations? No matter what your canvas of your life looks like today; even if your dirty, damaged and in need of a do-over.....we are all works-in-progress destined to be a designer original. 


--Jonna