We are Jars of Clay

For years I have used this analogy in therapy about being "cracked pots". I use the analogy to teach about the glory of being "cracked" by our struggles and battles within the world as they are often what makes us stronger and more 'connectable' with others.  I tell a story that is derived from an old fable about a man carrying water down a path between a well and his house.  He carries the water using a shoulder pole that is constructed of a large pole with a pot at either end that would be balanced across ones shoulders.  In the fable one of the pots is in pristine condition and gets a full amount of water to the man's house each trip.  The other, is cracked and leaks, delivering only about half of the water to the house each time.  The fable expresses the cracked pot's disappointment and shame in itself for being cracked and not fulfilling its duties.  The man explains to the cracked pot that for years he has known it was cracked and therefore spread flower seeds along the path they walk daily.  Each day the water leaked out from the cracked pot watered the seeds providing a beautiful scenery for the man to enjoy as he did his daily chore.  He explained that the cracked pot served its purpose in providing beauty and joy in the man's life daily. 

I love how God plants these seeds in my heart and mind and over the years grows them into a message that is so beautiful and full of love that it is overwhelming.  This week one of my daily devotions included the following passage of scripture: 

2 Corinthians 4:6-18

New Living Translation (NLT)

⁶ For God, who said, “Let there be light in the darkness,” has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ.

⁷ We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure.^[a] This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.

⁸ We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. ⁹ We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. ¹⁰ Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies.

¹¹ Yes, we live under constant danger of death because we serve Jesus, so that the life of Jesus will be evident in our dying bodies. ¹² So we live in the face of death, but this has resulted in eternal life for you.

¹³ But we continue to preach because we have the same kind of faith the psalmist had when he said, “I believed in God, so I spoke.”^{[b] 14} We know that God, who raised the Lord Jesus,^[c] will also raise us with Jesus and present us to himself together with you. ¹⁵ All of this is for your benefit. And as God’s grace reaches more and more people, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory.

¹⁶ That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are^[d] being renewed every day. ¹⁷ For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! ¹⁸ So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.

As I read this passage I thought back to the cracked pot fable.  In this scripture I imagine that we are all clay jars.  When we are born we are in pristine condition created by the ultimate creator and artist, God the Father, within the pristine clay pot he creates a space.  A special space that is prepared to receive the "great treasure" if we so choose.  I would suggest that the "great treasure" is the Holy Spirit which enters us, the clay pots, after we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.  As we go throughout the world, being fragile but pristine clay pots, we are damaged.  We are damaged by parents who are bound to make mistakes, peers in school, hurtful words, hurtful looks, failed goals, abuse done by others, abuse done by ourselves, sins we commit, sins others commit, etc., etc., etc.  When we do not have Christ/the Holy Spirit in us we are simply a cracked pot dark inside and broken.  Perhaps we are able to mend ourselves up and appear to still be functional but the light is not there.  When we have Christ/the Holy Spirit in us, with each crack (damage done throughout our journey in this world) Jesus shines brighter through us.  I imagine it is like a chrysalis that forms slowly over time.  Like the scripture says we are pressed on every side but we are not crushed! With each crack I imagine a piece of clear chrysalis forms where the light of Jesus can shine through even brighter.  In the end, when we arrive in the Glory of Heaven, we will be transformed into the beautiful butterfly that is our spiritual bodies that will live eternally with God the Father and His son.  Until then, He mends us and shines through us; using all of those broken places, all of those cracks to shine brighter because He loves us and heals us regardless of what happens in this world as long as we trust  Him and keep that special space full of His "great treasure".  

When I think of it this way it helps me to "count it all joy" when I am in the times of being broken, beaten by the world, in heartache, etc.  Because, I know that during that time Jesus is in me and will mend me and through that crack will shine brighter and I can be used by Him to spread the joy that is Him to others.  What an honor to be a cracked clay jar......or as I've always called it in the past a "cracked pot".  If I have to be cracked in order for people to see that beautiful light that "great treasure" than I am honored to go through the cracking because I certainly don't want to get to heaven and explain why I hid that light in my perfectly pristine clay pot and shared such a wonderful gift with no one. Embrace being a cracked pot with me?!?!?!?!?