More than Just a Pretty Vase

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

One day at church, it occurred to me that if God is the Potter, and I am the clay, I want Him to make me into something useful, something with a purpose.

Some vases are made to be pretty - nothing more.  You stick them on a shelf or on a table to look pretty, take up space, collect dust, then be sold for $2 at a yard sale.  There are some vases where you put lovely fresh cut flowers for a week until the flowers die then you stick the vase back in the cabinet.

Then there are flower pots that may or may not be pretty, but that's not the point of the flower pot.  The true purpose is serving as a home for plants to thrive.  It is not glamorous.  It's actually dirty, but it's strong.  You see the plants - not the pot.  It has a purpose.  It has meaning.  It is more than just a pretty vase.

This is what I want for my life.  I want people to see Christ, not me.  I want to get down in the trenches and get my hands dirty.  I want to be strong.  I want to have purpose and meaning in all that I do.  I don't want to just sit on a shelf collecting dust.  I want to be useful.  I want to be more than just a pretty vase.