7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the exceeding greatness of the power may be of God, and not from ourselves; 8 we are pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, yet not unto despair; 9 persecuted, yet not forsaken; struck down, yet not destroyed; 10always bearing about in the body the dying of Jesus, that the life also of Jesus may be manifested in our body. 11 For we who live are always delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake, that the life also of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh.
Clay can be a profound example of the work God does in a person.
In the summer of 2023, I was laying in bed of an early morning, cozy and relaxed, allowing my heart and mind to simmer in the flow state they enter during that artist’s golden hour. It happened that day that a vision of a ceramic art piece materialized from the deeps, surfacing just long enough for me to grasp a very vague impression. I’ve learned over time that these visions are calls to create. I may not be able to begin them right away, but they always persist in my heart until I’m able to bring them to life.
I was finally able to begin the project in December of 2023. By then, I knew how large the piece should be, I knew the method I would use to create it, and I thought I knew that it would eventually be a lamp, or incorporate light in some way. I also know that my pieces never turn out to match the exact vision; and that’s ok. Recreating the vision is not the goal. I’ve learned that allowing the piece to take its form as I am led is the way forward.
During this time, I found it difficult to work consistently to build the project. Not only was I working on my business, but I was also taking care of my aging parents- my father at 95 and my mother on hospice, and we were pretty sure her time on earth was limited. Clay can easily dry out and become unworkable, and in spite of all I could do, the piece dried out too much before I could finish it. It was so close, but as I tried to reconstitute it to a malleable dampness, it collapsed in on itself.
By now, I had been taught that this project was a ‘self portrait’ of sorts. I also knew that it was an encouragement to my heart based on the scripture from 2 Corinthians 4:7-11.
The fact that I had to start again was a part of the story it would tell. I took the broken pieces, rehydrated the clay, and began again. Every part of the large form would be pressed but not crushed. It would experience intense pain and loss in a way, and yet in the end it would prove to be a beautiful treasure representing the work of art that the power of God has created of me using all the hard, difficult times and trials of my life.
I pressed it. I squeezed it into place. I pounded pieces of clay into molds, then scored them in the process of adhering them to the form. I added to and took away clay to achieve the perfected form.
By the time the piece had taken its final form…a pitcher to represent God’s power flowing from the work He is doing in me… Mother was in her final days–and her final days were very hard; hard for her and hard for those of us watching by her bedside. All of us questioned why it was taking God so long to take her home. I remember that my middle daughter and I were discussing this, and something came out of my mouth that had to be from God. “God won’t take her until He has worked all the beautiful things. We don’t see them as beautiful now, but these are just exactly the things that He uses to create all the beautiful things.”
In the days after Momma finally was freed from her suffering, I was able to put the final touches on this self-portrait and fire it for the final time.
It is titled “All the Beautiful Things”. Each and every part of it; from the form of a pitcher to each little applique’ which was pressed into a mold, scored and attached, and finally the burning, purifying, hardening fire it was subject to, is a meaningful representation of how God works through me–and can work through you, as well. It is a reminder to us that when we’re trying to trust God in the midst of the hard things, He is creating in and for us All the Beautiful Things.