Sandbox Memories and Endless Possibilities.

It was about 27 some years ago; there were 2 little blonde heads, bent together in the sand box of my childhood home. Taking turns, the heads would bob up and down as the little bodies dug a hole into the sand. My best friend and I were taking turns with the plastic shovel. Since it was no longer my turn, I was using both of my now grimy seven year old hands to scoop and scrape into the gravely sand. We continued on in determination as we made it through the last layer of sand in my sand box.  Foraging ever deeper we dug down into the dirt like tenacious Pirates searching for a long lost treasure.

I could feel and see the texture changing as the dark soil beneath was slowly being revealed. I knew we were getting close to our goal as my fingers grew cold, matching the temperature of the earth I was delving into. Still we kept plunging our shovel and little hands deeper down as we scratched away at the earth.

As I leaned down into our hole I reached with both hands, fingers out stretched and pulled away as much of the dirt I could muster back up the slanted wall of our ever growing hole. We giggled as we pondered the possibility of reaching China through our hole like they did on our favorite cartoons. 

A few more handfuls of the dark dirt were flung away, and our giggles quickly changed to excited exclamations of victory. We had finally found our long sought after damp, hard packed treasure. My best friend and I had struck the gold we had been digging for, the cold, and clammy, pack of grey clay nestled in the earth below. Today we were going to make something with this clay. It held endless possibilities in our young imaginative minds and clumsy little fingers. 

As I grew older I followed my longing to create in the art world. I can remember the musty smell and the way the wet clay would feel in my hands. I can recall the exhilaration I would feel as I pondered the possibilities for this unassuming simple lump of clay. 

Would I create a functional piece? Maybe I could spin a bowl for a families’ dinner table, or an elegant vase for displaying beautiful flower arrangements. Perhaps I would carve and mold the bust of someone famous, or a sculpture, a master piece of fine art. The possibilities were ... You got it, Endless. 

You are the potter I am the clay,

Isaiah 64:8

Yet you, Lord, are our Father.

We are the clay, you are the potter;

We are all the work of your hand.

I love how God used this analogy in the Bible. Could it be possible our Lord wanted us to understand our possibilities are endless in His hands? God is the most creative and skilled Master of Art that has ever existed. Just take a few moments and look at His creation. 

Take a walk through the woods, 

or stare at the intricacy in the designs of His flowers.

Admire His amazing paint that splashes across the skies in a beautiful sunset…

Or the mystery and wonder of His lovely underwater world. 

He is absolutely amazing in His variety and the hand crafted beauty of each of His precious creations. You see, the possibilities for a lump of clay in God’s hands are endless.

My friends the possibilities for us are endless as well. We too are created and designed for a purpose by His hands. No longer is the confidence of who I am or designed to be wrapped in my own success or failures. Now I see it resides in who I place my confidence in. 

You see this confidence is not about who I am…

It’s about who my God is. 

I know I am frail, and prone to selfishness.  At times, I long for the easy way out, and I sometimes suffer from the fear of making mistakes…

But when my eyes are on my God, then everything changes.

He is all powerful.  He is magnificent. All knowing, all loving, and in control. He is Truth, and trust worthy. He is faithful even when I am not. Anything is possible with Him. With this knowledge, no longer do my fears resonate in me, but instead the Holy Spirit proclaims God’s Truth and His power.

Today could you take a moment and silence the fears and doubts about yourself and what you are capable of? Instead, rest in who your God is. Go in His strength today. Let His peace and purpose for you guide your every step. In the big and in the small trust the Potter. We are safe, and cherished in His skilled and loving hands.