Jars of Clay

One of my favorite verses (and I have quite a few favorites!) is found in 2 Corinthians 4:7:  "For we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us." I love this verse!  It's a powerful statement that has meaning for every Christian.

The photo of lovely, colorful pots above was taken some years ago in the Outer Banks of North Carolina.  Even though these clay pots look sturdy, every one of them can be broken -- that's a common problem with clay pots.  Some of the pretty pots and jars in the picture were probably already chipped.  We share a similar problem with our bodies, which are the jars of clay referred to in the scripture.  No matter how strong a body might be, it can still be broken and many of us already have a chip here and there.

These jars of clay that we walk around in have a couple other things in common with the pretty clay pots.  Like clay, our bodies are also made from the elements of the earth, and were also fashioned by a master potter's hands according to a pattern he had in his mind.  Some day, the inner self that comprises each of us will leave our jar of clay and rise into the loving, waiting arms of our Master Potter.

Until that day though, we should rejoice in the fact that we are filled to the brim with the priceless treasure of the all-surpassing power of the Holy Spirit that is from God (and actually IS God) and -- as we need to be constantly reminded -- not from ourselves.

This reminds me of the two sides of the "strength coin" as I call it:  "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" versus "Without Him I can do nothing."  If we could just remember this in our everyday lives as we rest and rejoice in the all-surpassing power that abides within us as Christians, it would make our lives much less stressful.  A jar of clay under stress is much more likely to crack -- and we don't want to be a cracked pot, do we (: