Daniel Fast (Day Eighteen-Broken)

(February 9th, 2012)

The Word tells us in Isaiah 64:8, Yet O Lord, You are our Father. We are the clay; You are the potter; we are all the work of Your hand. As I mentioned in my last post, I feel like God is using my current work with clay to identify more with this picture of who we are in His hands. I envision God, the Potter, sitting at the wheel, with me as the shapeless glob of clay spinning out of control with no structure...spinning, spinning, spinning - no real direction or purpose. Then the Lord sets His loving hands upon me, firm but gentle. No longer spinning aimlessly and out of control, the rough edges begin to smooth out. As I begin to take shape with a solid foundation and a bit of structure, He releases the firm grip and exchanges it with the loving touch of His finger in the center as if pointing to the core of me to say, "You are mine and you will be formed to serve my purposes." With His finger touching on the center and the core being exposed, the junk that is inside has no place else to go but to be purged out.

These past three weeks have been like me being on a throwing wheel, in more than one way. I have been eating a lot differently, so naturally my body has gone through a detoxification process. Most food is contaminated by various ingredients deemed unnecessary for human life, such as flavor enhancers, food coloring, and artificial preservatives. My body has been cleansed from such toxins and restored to a more natural state. The same can be said for me spiritually. I have been experiencing God in a more intentional and intimate matter, so naturally my heart has gone through its own cleansing. Most of our nature is contaminated by various ingredients deemed sinful and therefore a hindrance to having a Spirit-filled life, such as toxic thoughts, unhealthy values, and selfish motives. My heart has been cleansed from such toxins and restored to a more pure state. 

In the picture above the unnecessary clay has been pulled out from the center and laid aside. Christ did the same for us when He took on our sins and laid His life aside. With that one time it was finished. All my sin has been taken on by Him for eternity and I am His. I'm so thankful the Lord is continually exposing me and cleansing me from my junk so I can better serve Him!