Jars of Clay

With the ears of my heart,

I have been hearing the words,

"Jars of Clay."

Of course, I grab my Bible.
I know it's somewhere.
I think, "Romans?  Corinthians?"
Concordance.

"For we have this treasure in jars of clay
to show that this all-surpassing power 
is from God and not from us.

We are hard pressed on every side,
but not crushed;
perplexed, but not in despair;
persecuted, but not abandoned;
struck down, but not destroyed."
2 Corinthians 4:7-10

I heard a ladies' speaker once say
"We are clay pots."

Some of my ironstone pieces are broken,
missing pieces, and
beyond repair.

I treasure even the broken ones
to remind myself that although broken
I am not without use.

Unlike my ironstone, God can put the pieces
back together again.

As clay pots we are reminded,
"We always carry around in our body
the death of Jesus,
so that the life of Jesus,
may also be revealed in our body."
(v. 10)

These are some of my pretties.
Broken, cracked, but Beautiful.

Something beautiful, 
something good.
All my confusion, he understood.
(Aren't you glad?)
All I had to offer Him,
was brokenness and strife, 
But, He's making something beautiful
Out of my life.

My favorite pieces of ironstone
are discolored from excess heat.

Been through the Refiner's fire?

To endure under pressure,
is to come out stronger
than before.

,

Hard pressed and stuck down,
but
NEVER FORSAKEN,
I pray that the LIFE of Jesus
may be seen in me.

I've been in the Refiner's fire.
I haven't always passed the test,
I'm sorry to say.
But today I am stronger for having endured.

We're starting a Bible study called,
"Stronger,"
that I'll be sharing with you soon.

What about a ladies' connection group,
"Jars of Clay?"

Hummmmm.
Something to think about.,

Blessings,
Bonnie:)