This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: “Go down to the potter’s house, and there I will give you my message.” So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, “Can I not do with you, Israel, as this potter does?” declares the Lord. “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, Israel. Jeremiah 18:1-6
“The work of God is fashioning man.” Shaping the creature, whom He formed out of the mud of this earth with His own hands, into His own image and likeness, and so bringing him to share ever more fully in His own life…“The business of the Christian is nothing else but to be ever preparing for death.”
Irenaeus of Lyons in Against Heresies 5:15:2 and commentary by John Behr in On the Apostolic Preaching (Crestwood: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 1997) 104.
If God has given you apostolic work to do, the Apostolic Fathers can provide rich inspiration.
Today’s Scripture from Jeremiah reminds us that God can make broken people into useful vessels. Irenaeus describe it similarly that God’s work is fashioning us. Our work is preparing for life eternal with Him.
We do that by fulfilling the calling He has for us: to do good works which he prepared in advance for us to do. As our team has convened from around the world in Malawi, this idea inspires me.
And the word “mud” struck me in reading Irenaeus. God made us from mud. Many things in Malawi are fashioned from mud. Each one is fashioned for a purpose. That’s the same for us. God made us for a purpose.
It’s a bold vision to create a contextualize generosity curriculum for every Sunday School class in Malawi. Therein we will remind each child the purpose God made them: to love God and love others generously.
Pray for the Holy Spirit to guide us as we work together with influential national workers. And lift yourself up to the Lord asking Him what you need to do to prepare for your death, which is experiencing life eternal.