And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, of whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. Ephesians 4:30–32 (NKJV)

Pop! The clay sculpture broke in the kiln!

My friend Lauren sculpts animals and figurines. She said that an art piece will be fragile or it may break in the kiln unless the potter gets air bubbles out of the clay. To accomplish this, the potter wedges the clay. Unlike kneading which incorporates air, wedging eliminates the air pockets as the clay is pushed, pounded, pulled, and smashed. A variety of techniques are used in wedging, depending on the potter’s strength, the wetness of the clay, and the potter’s preference. Wedging also helps remove moisture, make the clay uniformly consistent, and can be used to combine types of clay. It is said that wedging the clay aligns the particles in the clay, which is useful for using the clay on a wheel.

What does wedging clay have to do with us?

If we want to be useful vessels in the Potter’s service, we must grow in our faith. A fragile faith breaks or weakens when circumstances are difficult. The Potter knows just what to do to eliminate the air pockets of doubt, anxiety, fear, and the like. Sometimes His wedging technique uses circumstances, sermons, Scriptures, or other people He puts in our life.

God pulls us in ways that will pop the air bubbles of sin. He knows that bitterness, wrath, and anger will break relationships and cause us misery. Evil speech and lies cause us to be untrustworthy. They must be squashed out of our lives. It can be a painful process. I don’t like to examine my faults, or admit them and have to seek forgiveness. Yet smashing my pride and self-sufficiency is a necessary part of God’s wedging of this piece of clay.

How God has pushed and pulled you to change you? Journal what your reflections reveal to you. Please share in the comments as you feel led.

Right now, God is using the loss of my brother-in-law and my frequent respiratory issues after having pneumonia to get my attention and to get me to focus on Him instead of my long to-do list. I don’t want to regret not spending time with God and my family because of too many commitments. I need to learn to rest and take care of myself, too. God has pushed me to take sabbaticals from my activities and rest in Him. This Clay in the Potter’s Hands series is from what I’m learning since hearing a sermon and other quotes on that topic. It also caused me to investigate pottery-making from people who know the craft, which helps me to understand the clay and the potter’s role better.

We are clay in the Potter’s hands. Let’s ask ourselves:

Am I yielding to the work of the Potter? Am I relying on my own self? Is the Holy Spirit evident in my life? Am I becoming more like Jesus?

Heavenly Father, please do the work You want to do in my life. Remove my inconsistencies and flaws that keep me from being who You want me to become. In Jesus’ powerful name, Amen.

Thank you for reading my devotionals. You can go back to past devotionals if you missed any of the 2025 Clay in the Potter’s Hands series, Attributes of God: A to Z series in 2024, or others dating back to August 2020. Click on the date under the title to expand the text.

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Scriptures marked NKJV are taken from the NEW KING JAMES VERSION (NKJV): Scripture taken from the NEW KING JAMES VERSION®. Copyright© 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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