Putty in His Hands

A couple nights ago I had a dream about silly putty. OK, maybe you wouldn't call it a dream....I woke up thinking about it. You might say that's a strange thing for a grown woman with no small children to think about and maybe it is. Silly putty was one of those things that my sisters and I used to play with many Sunday mornings with the newspaper comics sprawled out on the dinning room floor. We'd take impressions of our favorite comic strips-Garfield, the Peanuts, Calvin and Hobbes. We'd roll the putty into a ball then press it into a pancake-like flat circle. Then we'd press the putty onto the comic strip. The goal was to lift some of the ink from the paper to make a mirror image of the characters on the putty being careful not to tear the paper or over-stretch the imprint. Then the real fun began. We'd pull on the edges of the putty, stretching Snoopy's nose until he looked like he suffered from an over-bight or stretching Garfield vertically making the once fat cat into something tall and lanky. Once we'd had our fill distorting the impressions until they were barely recognizable, we'd start the process all over again, massaging the silly putty until the ink had disappeared and there was no sign of what had been there before. We'd press the putty around our fingers and up against our palms to make perfect impressions of our unique prints. The putty would take the shape of whatever we pressed it against. It was simple fun that would give us hours of entertainment.

So why was silly putty on my mind? I haven't played with it or even thought about it since my children were small. As I mulled it over on my drive into work that morning, I was reminded of Isaiah 64:8 "Yet you, Lord, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand."

I don't know if you've ever played with silly putty but it comes in a plastic egg shaped container. When you first open up the egg, the putty is just an unshaped pile of goo, resembling used chewing gum. It's clean, un-stretched, un-touched, un-used but most importantly, un-sharpened. It's not until you take it out of it's protective shell that it can be used. Sometimes when you work with silly putty, it gets dirty, a hair gets stuck to it or it gets stretched until it breaks into two pieces. But, the person molding it can carefully remove the hair or they can press the broken pieces back together until there is no sign, no scare, not even a seam....nothing resembling the once broken, dirty pieces of putty. As the putty is pressed and molded, over time it's color begins to change with the ink of the impressions that have been worked into it and the natural oils from the working hands. It's no longer the original pink, un-used pile of goo that it once was. It's original; mine would be a slightly different shade than my sisters. The longer the putty is massaged, the easier it is to work with. It becomes soft, more pliable and if you leave it, unprotected and un-worked in the open air, it will become stiff, harden and if left long enough, when bent.....it can break.

If we stay in our protective shell, never come out of our comfort zone, never allow ourselves to be placed in the hands of our Father, we are no different than the new and un-used putty. Yes, we are clean, fresh and pink. But, the protective shell that we put around ourselves only prevents the Lord from using us and shaping us. It separates us from Him. There is no risk of getting dirty or stretched-maybe beyond out limits but we also go un-used, un-changed, dare I say, un-original. The enemy would have you believe that you'll be alone and unprotected outside your shell. He'll use fear of getting dirty, fear of getting stretched or broken to keep you within its confines.

But we know.......

Jesus said in John 10:10 "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."

We weren't created to simply stay, unchanged, in our protective shells. The full life that Jesus came to give us won't fit inside that itty-bitty shell. God wants to mold us, use us, have fellowship with us. Yes, that means that you might get dirty and you are going to get stretched. But the Lord Jesus, when in His hands, cleans us up and presses us back together leaving no scare, no blemish, perfect and changed, an original. As He leaves His imprint on us, we are changed, no longer what we once were. We no longer need the protection of our plastic shell. He protects us as he molds us and shapes us. We don't become dry, stiff and hard but remain workable, pliable as we are surrounded by the warmth of His hands. As we press against Him, we become imprinted with Him, His likeness and we begin to look more like Him. After all, we are made in His own image (Gen 1:27).....wonderfully and beautifully made.

As I kept coming back to the silly putty, I have asked myself "Am I putty in His hands?" I would like to think so but truth be told, many times, I find myself with my guard up......afraid to step out of my own comfort zone, afraid that I'll make a mistake or that I'll be hurt or disappointed. The putty is nothing except goo until it's placed in the hands of the molder. The putty can no more mold itself into anything than I can mold myself. Just like my sisters and I would press the putty against the morning paper, I need to make myself available to be pressed into the Lord. Bring the walls down, step out and trust Him. Let Him do the molding and truly be putty in His hands.

Could'a, Would'a, Should'a

Well, now that Christmas is behind us and the new year is approaching......fast, what now? Oh, I suppose we could jump on the "gotta loose 15 lbs News Years resolution" band wagon. In fact, I will likely get back to the gym and tighten up the diet that has spun out of control in the name of holiday celebration. As I was praying last night, I was thinking about how to have a closer relationship with Jesus and how to be more sensitive to the Holy Spirit. The phrase that kept coming to mind was "let it go". No, not the popular song from the Disney movie Frozen (in case you were wondering). Let what go? I could name at least a dozen things that I should let go from my life that have gotten in the way of my relationship with the Lord. Failures, disappointment, frustrations just to name a few. But what does the bible way about the past?

Isaiah 43:18

Forget the former things, do not dwell on the past.

Most of us drive, right? Have you ever tried to maneuver the car while in reverse and looking through the rear view mirror; perhaps you were backing out of the drive way or into a parking spot? Of course you have. It's not too difficult. Would you want to drive down the freeway like that; at 70 miles an hour looking through the rear view mirror? If I were to ask my teenage son that question, he'd probably chuckle and be up for the challenge but for most of us, the answer is no. We wouldn't dream of driving that way. So, tell me something. Why do we live our lives that way? We are trying to move forward in life, get from point A to point B, all the while looking in our rear view mirror.

I should have done this. I should have done that. Someone once told me "we can could'a, would'a, should'a until we're blue in the face but it won't change the anything." We tend to go where we are looking. I'm sure you've heard the expression "keep you're eyes on the ball". Well, if you're eyes are on the balls you missed last year, how can you hit a home-run this year? Instead, you're more likely to get hit with a pitch and knocked to the ground. Not only can you miss the opportunities that have been afforded to you but you'll likely repeat the same mistakes and experience the same disappointments simply because you were 'looking' at the them.

Philippians 3:14

I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

2018 is right around the corner and we are going to see and read multiple stories, reports and TV specials that will review this past year, the tragedies we've faced, the public figures and celebrities we've lost, and the news stories that were in the headlines. I am in no way negating the importance of taking a quick glance back and remembering those who have suffered, those we have lost and celebrating our accomplishments. The past is something we should take a quick look at from time to time, learn from it, testify about it and help someone else who is facing the same struggle but we can't afford to live there. What matters most is NOW and what we do with it. Since God forgives us from our sins, shouldn't we forgive ourselves of our past failures (sin or not).

What does God have in store for you?

As for me, I'm still going to have intentions for the coming year. Yes, I'm going to get back to the gym and eat better with the hopes of taking off 20....alright, 30 pounds. But most importantly, I'll be looking forward with excitement and expectation for what God has in store for me, my family and my church rather than fear of failure. I could'a, would'a, should'a a lot of things but that doesn't matter. We've got a great big God and He is good. His plans for me........His plans for you are far greater than either of us could ever imagine.

Happy New Year!