Читать книгу There is Beauty Here - Rebecca Bolin - Страница 8

Day 1

“But now, O Lord, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand”

—Isa 64:8 KJV

We are all like lumps of clay in the hands of a loving God. There is beauty in the way he pulls us up from the miry pit and shapes us into a fine vessel that is ready for service. God takes all of our dirt and filth and clothes us in his righteousness. Even when we go through correction, hardship, pain, and disappointment there is beauty in the way God puts us back on the wheel and molds us and shapes us into a work of art that is pleasing to him. He keeps working the clay and fashions us into an instrument that can be used by him. He smooths out the rough edges and fires us in trials that test the limits of our strength and yet, somehow, make us even stronger. Sometimes, he even crushes us and starts over, but he never throws us away. He is the master creator, and we are his handiwork. His discipline can be hard, but he guides us through his living word. When we heed his word, he speaks to us through it, and reveals the areas where we need to be refined. There is beauty in the work he is doing. There is beauty in the time he takes to get our attention and correct us. There is beauty in the way he orchestrates our lives to place us in contact with people who speak light and life to us. There is beauty in the way he defines our path—how he laid it out from the very beginning to give us every opportunity to grow and make right choices. There is beauty in the way he inhabits our praises (Ps. 22:3). When we praise him, his presence is right there with us, and we can feel him near. There is beauty in the way he meets us in our quiet moments of prayer and calms our fears and anxieties. There is beauty in the way he responds to his children with comfort and strength when we cry to him for help. There is beauty in the way he teaches us to trust in him—to believe that he really is working all things together for our good (Rom 8:28). And there is beauty in the way he embraces us and washes over us in a flood of joy when we give with no thought of receiving. His unfailing love for us is beautiful and it is beyond comprehension. His love has no bounds. It has no beginning, and it has no end. He is from everlasting to everlasting, and he is reaching out his hand to us. All we have to do is accept his beautiful gift.

Prayer

Lord, help me to understand that you love me with an unfailing love. Your mercy and your goodness endure forever. Help me to believe that if I confess my sins to you, you are faithful and just to forgive me of my sin and to cleanse me from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9), not because of my goodness or anything I have done to earn your forgiveness, but because of your goodness and great mercy.