But now, O Lord, You are our Father; We are the clay, and You our potter; And all we are the work of Your hand. Isaiah 64:8

 My sweet granddaughter, Ellie, loves to play with play doe. Every time she comes to my house its “Pappa, can we play with play doe”, and of course we get it out and start making things with it. On one occasion, we found all of the play doe had hardened because the lid hadn’t been put on tightly and it dried out. Off we go to the store to buy more play doe.

 Today’s scripture reminds us that as children of God, we are to allow the hand of God mold and shape us. We are to be pliable in His hands as He works in our life to create something beautiful. Sometimes the pressure He applies can be painful, but necessary to soften the hard areas that keep us from taking on the form of Christ. Looking back, I can see many times in my life when I endured life’s pressures to the point I was ready to give up, but soon afterwards I got a glimpse of what He was doing and now I can see how important it was to go through those tough times to get where I am today.

 When we live our life outside God’s perfect will, just like the play doe, we too become hard and God can’t use us in the manner He planned. After a brief hiatus, we eventually surrender our stubbornness to God and He has to apply the appropriate pressure to make us pliable again. As I type, I ask myself why then do I put myself in that situation? Maybe you too have experienced the same stubbornness and have felt His pressure, squeezing out the bad, so He can use you again for His glory.

 Prayer for today: God, help me to stay within your hands of protection as you mold and shape my life into something beautiful. When I get off balance, gently bring me back to the center of your perfect will so I don’t have to feel the pressure of your loving discipline. I want to be at the center of your perfect will today and every day.