Lumpy Clay or Beautiful Vessel? 
by Jeannie Young

From Jer 18:6 Behold, as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are ye in mine hand

Have you ever seen a Potter's wheel? The Potter takes an unshaped lump of clay, adds some water, puts the clay on the wheel and spins it and shapes it with his own hands. 

How that is so much like God in how He shapes our lives! We are that lump of clay. Pretty worthless in the lumpy shape we start out in! As we sit on His wheel, and He lovingly adds the Living Water to our formlessness, we are then beginning to be transformed by His love for us. He desires the best for us as he pounds on us, and pushes us into a shape that can be useful for some purpose. Just as a vase, bowl or pitcher each have a specific purpose in life, so too do we, when we let the Master shape us with His perfect will for our lives. We can be transformed from a worthless void into a vessel that is employable for the praise and glory of our Maker. We need to let Him wash us with the Living Water, the Word of God and make us into His image. We need, like a vine, to be pruned and cut back where we are useless, so that we can grow a good vine and bear good fruit that will last. We do not want to be like wheat planted in rocky soil that cannot find soil that will allow a root to grow. We need to take all the seeds that God plants in us and water them with prayer and much meditating on the Word so that the seeds can be cultivated and grown so that we can bear a full crop. 

After all the love that our Master has shown for us, how can we not lovingly surrender our all to Him? When I think of all the mercy He has shown us when all we really deserve is punishment, I cannot help but praise Him! His love is beyond comprehension, when we humans are such ingrates even to our loving God who died on the cross at Calvary. Do we ever really reflect on the price He paid so that we could be free from sin and death? I know that I could never survive the beatings he took, even before the cross. That crown of thorns on His brow, oh how that must have been so painful! And imagine how He was nailed to the cross and suffocated from what crucifixion does to the body organs. It is supposed to be the most painful way to die ever imagined. Our Jesus did all that for us because He loves us! How do we daily thank Him for all that He did for us? Do we get on that Potter's Wheel willingly and see what shaping God desires to do with us today? Or do we try to reach a hand out of the clay and push God away? 

What will make us more moldable in His hands? What will it take in your lives to get you to surrender your all to Him? Beloved, why do you want to do things your way when our loving God wants to make you into His image? He is perfect, why would you want to be anything like you and nothing like Him? 

Relax, yield your will to the love of our Creator who wants to make us into the best we can be! Yes let us be transformed today, let us renew our minds and hearts, as we focus on the Lord God who loves us with an everlasting love! Let us desire His best in our lives and willingly get on the altar so we can be a living sacrifice that is pleasing to Him! Just as in the OT the fragrance of the offering was a sweet and pleasing smell to God, let our lives also be fragrant and find favor with the Almighty. Let us put aside our own wills, let us seek His, putting aside all fleshly lusts that might make us stiff or unyielding on His Potter's Wheel. Let us be a sweet offering for His glory today! 

©2000 JLYoung

"The only way to keep a broken vessel full 
is to keep it always under the tap."--Dwight L. Moody

Joyfully Rejoicing in His Love & Grace,
Jeannie 

http://members.truepath.com/gini4jesus/index.html 
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Jer 15:16 Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts. 

I don't know about you, but when I eat something I like, I savor its fragrance, enjoy its beauty with my eyes, and allow the tasty morsel to linger on my tongue, taking in every nuance of flavor. Then I swallow it, deep into my being where it will be digested, and consumed by all that I am, that I may be nourished and refreshed by it. 
Kinda makes you hungry, doesn't it?

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WHAT'S NEW? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?

Chat Room (open 24/7)

Prayer Room

Greeting Cards

New Look for the Archives

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GUEST CHAT

Our first chat with a special guest was rather interesting, to say the least!  How wonderfully patient and dear Susan has been!  For those of you who made the chat, you are aware that things didn't quite go as expected.  When Susan and I compared notes afterwards, we discovered that we had TWO chats!  Thanks to our rounded earth, and the time zones its well rounded body causes, we somehow missed one another. 

I enjoyed a chat without a guest and Susan enjoyed her chat without a host!  Praise God for sense of humors!  Well, needless to say, Susan is quite disappointed that she didn't get to meet some of you, and has generously offered to share her knowledge and experience with the ladies of Sarah's Tent anyway!  

If you are an aspiring writer, or have questions pertaining to children's books and publishing, Susan will give your letter personal attention and answer your questions here in the newsletter, where it will be posted on her Guest Gallery web page as well.

Write Susan and ask her your question.

Thanks Susan! What a terrific opportunity!

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Champions ... trust God while others ask for answers.
They step forward while everyone else prays for volunteers.
~ Dr. Lester Sumrall
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Tammy Haney won the game this past week!

Tammy, we need you to contact us at sarahstent@aol.com to give us your address so that we can mail your original art print prize!

  Click Here to learn more. 
(pssst - the penguin is STILL dancing - and standing on the Word!)

Contributing a prize is a great way to show off your talents or business! 
Contact Sarahstent@sarahstent.com for more information.
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"I, even I, am he Who comforts you. Who are you, that you should be afraid of man, who shall die, and of a son of man, who shall be made (as destructible) as grass, That you should forget the Lord your Maker, Who stretched forth the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth ..."
Isaiah 51:12-13

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Our Sponsor
Please don't forget to give financially to the web sites that minister to pastors wives.
The web masters who create them, support them out of their own pocket - just to bless you!  (It wouldn't be fair if they got all the blessing, now would it?) <grin>

Click Here
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The Kitchen is open!
Take a friend, click here, and enjoy yourself!

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I have a fun recipe for you that feeds a gang! This past weekend we celebrated our 40th Anniversary with a Celebration of Marriage! We had a service Sunday afternoon to renew our vows and the re-enactment of our original wedding, plus a prayer of dedication with our children/grandchildren, and a beautiful reception. It was a glorious time with all praise to God!

We have had the privilege of ministering in six churches, and five of the six churches were represented. In order to have as much time with friends and family as possible, we opened our home all weekend to everyone that cared to join us for meals from Friday night through Monday. Fortunately, we have a large home because we had 25-30 people here for each meal. It seemed like a little bit of heaven as so many of our friends who knew us, but didn't know each other, thoroughly enjoyed being together.

Sunday night I used the following recipe, which was fun! It's the "pile up" type of meal. It may sound strange, but it is DELICIOUS--especially for those who are adventurous enough to put it all on! (I doubled the recipe for about 30 people).

TEXAS MOUND

2 1/2 lbs hamburger
141/2 oz. stewed tomatoes
8 oz. tomato sauce
1/2 t. garlic powder
Salt to taste
2 small onions
10 3/4 oz. tomato puree
2 T. chili powder
1 t. cumin
2 - 15 oz. cans Ranch Beans 

Brown meat, and onions. Drain fat. Add all tomatoes and seasonings. Simmer 1 hour. Add beans and heat.

Put the following in small bowls on the table in the following order:
1. Crushed Fritos
2. Rice
3. Hamburger Mixture
4. Cheese
5. Shredded Lettuce
6. Green Onions
7. Black Olives
8. Chopped Tomatoes
9. Pecan Pieces
10. Coconut
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Dear Shannon:

I must first say that your publication is such a
blessing to me and helps me very much in my
ministry, WON WITHOUT A WORD, for women with
unsaved husbands. So much insight from Sarah's
Tent is helping us all to grow as women of God,
and minister to our husbands. Thank you so much,
and may the Lord bless you abundantly!

Many petitions, alerts, etc are false and may be
checked out simply at the following location:

http://urbanlegends.miningco.com/science/urbanlegends/library/blhoax.htm 

There are oodles of things like this that sap our
strength and have Christians wasting valuable
witnessing time chasing vapors. Jesus told us to
be harmless as doves, but wise as serpents. We
must discern when something is an hoax, an urban
legend, junk, or whatever it is besides the
absolute truth.

Blessings,
Melody

EDITOR: 
(I wrote Melody back and asked her to share more about her ministry, 
this is her reply);

"Well, bless you, Shannon!
I appreciate your kind comments and offer to share my letter. Here is some
additional information for you.

WON WITHOUT A WORD (WWAW), is
a website which is a haven of peace by which Christian
women of all denominations who have
unsaved husbands may interact with each other and
find acceptance, encouragement, refreshment, and
support in Christ Jesus.

WWAW members can be found in New Zealand, Australia,
Italy, Canada, and all over the U.S.A. In many
instances, our ladies have found that the
fellowship in their churches or ladies' groups
haven't quite met the needs of a woman in this unique
situation. Indeed, unless others are walking the
same path, it is very difficult to fathom their
unmet needs. Some come from abusive situations of
all types from childhood - or beyond - some are in
abusive situations presently, some are suffering
stalking by former or estranged husbands. The
abuse may range from verbal, emotional,
psychological, or even physical, which is
addressed periodically.

We laugh together, cry together, pray together,
and share our experiences, while uplifting each
other in prayer. Everything we share is wrapped in
Scripture. Our spiritual advisor is a mature
Christian, she is also a licensed and ordained
minister in a mainline denomination, who has 40
years of ministerial experience, and who holds a
family counseling degree. The web page is merely
the "welcome sign" on the door to WON WITHOUT A
WORD, eGroups, where the "party" is.

http://www.egroups.com/group/WonWithoutAWord 

WonWithoutAWord-subscribe@egroups.com 

The membership of over 100 women interact in a safe environment without
fear of interlopers. There is much love, support, and prayer. Our foundational
Scripture is:

"Wives, likewise, be submissive to your own husbands, that even if some do not
obey the Word, they, WITHOUT A WORD, may be won by the conduct of their wives,
when they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear."
(1 Peter 3:1-2)
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WEB SITES & RESOURCES

Click here: flash 
A very dear friend and sister in the Lord sent this to me and I found it to be a blessing.
Enjoy all. God Bless. Thank you, Rosie. 

 Visit our LINKS page for a wide variety of resources.
 Trade permanent links with us 

Joy in The Kitchen Volume 4 Issue 22