Jeremiah
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Jeremiah was one of the younger prophets. He was hesitant to preach to the public because he began his ministry at the age of 17. He was known as the “weeping prophet” because he pleaded with the Babylonians to not worship false gods and to be proactive about social justice issues. Historians say that he wrote Lamentations. One of the verses from his writings begins with “For I know the plans I have for you…” This is a wonderful verse for our graduates! Knowing that God has an amazing plan for us is pretty exciting! But as we graduate, wouldn’t we love to have the cliff-notes! Who wouldn’t want to have a glimpse of how our own story is going to unfold ahead of time. We do know that if we hold on to faith and walk by His word, things will work out. But these “plans” do not guarantee that the road won’t have bumps.
In another verse, Jeremiah visits the potter and we are reminded of a verse from the book of Isaiah that talks about clay. “He is the potter and we are the clay.” I am not sure if being clay is a good thing. Clay is pretty ridged. It isn’t as malleable as say playdough. It takes some strength and patience to reshape the clay. Shaping it is a long and hard process. Sometimes the clay doesn’t have enough water and changing its shape is almost impossible. It’s as if the clay is saying, “Enough, I’m tired of this process of being reshaped and remolded!”
Do you ever feel like that? Trials come to reshape us (like this pandemic). We resist, shift and then little by little begin to take on a new shape, sometimes with a smile and other times with sigh. Our faith gets stretched and tested. But in all the stretching, pulling and shaping we can let ourselves be changed into a vessel that can be used for His glory. We know that our journey will lead us to some “Y’s” in the road but we also know that the path will be “hope-filled” if we walk it with Christ!
This week’s Sunday School lesson is about Jeremiah. We have videos, crafts, snacks and games for you to share with your family. Some of the lessons suggest that you use clay but we have salt dough alternatives (simple ingredients in your home and much easier to mold)!
In another verse, Jeremiah visits the potter and we are reminded of a verse from the book of Isaiah that talks about clay. “He is the potter and we are the clay.” I am not sure if being clay is a good thing. Clay is pretty ridged. It isn’t as malleable as say playdough. It takes some strength and patience to reshape the clay. Shaping it is a long and hard process. Sometimes the clay doesn’t have enough water and changing its shape is almost impossible. It’s as if the clay is saying, “Enough, I’m tired of this process of being reshaped and remolded!”
Do you ever feel like that? Trials come to reshape us (like this pandemic). We resist, shift and then little by little begin to take on a new shape, sometimes with a smile and other times with sigh. Our faith gets stretched and tested. But in all the stretching, pulling and shaping we can let ourselves be changed into a vessel that can be used for His glory. We know that our journey will lead us to some “Y’s” in the road but we also know that the path will be “hope-filled” if we walk it with Christ!
This week’s Sunday School lesson is about Jeremiah. We have videos, crafts, snacks and games for you to share with your family. Some of the lessons suggest that you use clay but we have salt dough alternatives (simple ingredients in your home and much easier to mold)!
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