The artsy-fartsy part of my brain gets the same feel-good injection when I see how creative other people are. I regularly get one of my fixes on BBC, but I now see that people outside the UK can enjoy it too! Feel free to search for "The Great Pottery Throw Down" on Youtube...
The judges on this program are seasoned potters, experts in their field. They make every challenge look as easy as falling from a tree when they get behind the wheel to demonstrate.
But then it's the participants' turn.
The clay is handed out in large blocks, and each person cuts off what they believe they need for the challenge. Then it is rolled and slapped(!) by hand to make sure all invisible air bubbles are worked out before they take it to the wheel. Without this, it is difficult to get a smooth, well-formed work of art.
On to the wheel and the first step is to centre the clay, perpendicular to the centre of the wheel. If they don't, the clay becomes unmanageable and out of control once the wheel starts turning and may fly off the wheel completely! However, if they plant the clay in the right place from the start and keep enough pressure on it to make the clay stick there, the rest of the turns are completely within their control and they can focus on their art, kept wet with water, until the potter is satisfied with the form he had in mind.
Once the clay creation has been turned, it is taken off the wheel and placed in a drying room to become "leather hard". Not yet baked, but only slightly dried out to manipulate it further or scratch out beautiful patterns, or attach elements, or paint in bright colours.
Then it's off to the oven. And these ovens do not have a window in them. It is in one day and only when the kiln is opened again the next day, the potter can see if their creations have any cracks, or perhaps have completely exploded. It's sad that so many hours of work can be so easily gone once the fires start!
But finally, it's time for judging and the creations are unwrapped in front of the judges.
Here I always have to smile because the older judge just can't stop himself. Every time he sees a well-formed piece of pottery standing in front of him, he starts to cry. And according to Keith, “Whatever they've made doesn't even have to be perfect - as long as they've put their heart and soul into it, it's highly likely I'll end up crying."
For myself I see a lot of spiritual principles in this story. Today, however, I leave it for you to ponder and explore.
What I do want to share with you is this:
One day the Lord sent Jeremiah to a pottery studio. There was something specific that the Lord wanted to demonstrate to Jeremiah. He wanted to create in Jeremiah's head a picture of His love for the People and He wanted to make sure that Jeremiah would be able to remember this picture to share with the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
And Jeremiah went, and he looked, and the Lord showed him -
"So I went to the potter's house, and sure enough,
the potter was there, working away at his wheel.
Whenever the pot the potter was working on turned out badly,
as sometimes happens when you are working with clay,
the potter would simply start over and use the same clay to make another pot.”
Jeremiah 18:3 The Message
He used the same clay.
He would start over.
With the same clay.
The Potter is not troubled by the fallibility of the clay.
He simply starts over.
Your weekly inspiration: Miracle in me