SWHW Bible Reading Plan: May 2021Sample

Top Takeaway From Liz Patton:

Today’s reading begins with Jeremiah visiting a potter’s house to receive a message from the Lord.  Jeremiah notices that the potter, working at his wheel, makes a pot that is disfigured, and so he tries again and forms it into a different pot, “shaping it as seemed best to him” (Jeremiah 18:4).

God uses this as an illustration and asks Jeremiah in verse 6, “Can I not do with you as this potter does? Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand.”

I don’t know about you, but this promise offers me so much hope!  I have found in my own life that the more I submit to my Father’s molding and trust in His shaping of my future,  the more free I become.

You might be thinking--that’s crazy!  More submission means less freedom, not more freedom.  You might be thinking that you want to be in control, knowing exactly what tomorrow holds and being able to make your own choices to shape what your future looks like.

I get that it’s scary not knowing what the future holds, but as scary as the unknown is, I find so much comfort in knowing that even though I don’t know what tomorrow holds, I know the One who holds it and shapes it.  And He doesn’t just shape the future; He shapes me and equips me for what the future holds.  

The truth is--I know that if I were free to do my will, I would surely mess it up!  In fact, if left to my own shaping and molding, I would make a disaster of my life. (I actually had a little potter’s wheel when I was a kid, and so I KNOW this to be literally true, too!)

I love knowing that God shapes us and our lives as “seems best to Him” because He’s trustworthy, faithful, and all knowing.  He can see not just what is right in front of us, but what’s up ahead, too.

The other thing that I love about this piece of Scripture is that the Hebrew word for potter is...wait for it...Maker.  If He made us, we can surrender all to Him and obey Him, knowing that because He made us, He knows what is best for us, and we can trust Him to shape us for what is to come.

Dear God, I am so thankful that you are our Potter.  Our Maker.  Please forgive us for all of the times we thought we knew what was best.  Today we surrender our will.  We lay down at Your feet our agendas, our control, and our desires, and we choose obedience and submission.  You are a good, good Father, and You can be trusted.  And so we choose to trust You, even when we don’t know what tomorrow holds.  Shape us and mold us into the women You want us to be.  We love You so much.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.