Shaped Like Clay

Bible Reading: Isaiah 55:10-11; Jeremiah 18:6

Aidan held a headless clay animal in his hand. “Mom!” he wailed. “I forgot to put my animal back in the container, and the clay got all hard and dry before I could finish, so now it doesn’t have a head!”

“I’m sorry, Aidan,” said Mom, “but it’s too late to do anything about it now. It’s time for bed.”

“But my animal project is due tomorrow, and now all this work was for nothing!” Aidan groaned as he dropped the animal onto his dresser and crawled into bed.

Mom glanced at the Bible on Aidan’s dresser. “Aren’t you going to read a few verses before you go to sleep?” she asked. “I thought you did that every night.”

Aidan shrugged. “I’ve been busy lately,” he said, “and I don’t understand it very well anyway.” He pulled the covers up to his chin. “I think it’d be better to wait until I’m older so I can understand it.”

Mom picked up the animal Aidan had made. “Did you know we’re a lot like clay?”

“We are?” asked Aidan.

Mom nodded. “The Bible compares us to clay that God shapes,” she said. “When you shaped this, it took time, didn’t it? You kept working with it until it looked good. God does that with us. One way He does that is through His Word—the Bible. Even though you don’t understand everything, it helps you learn and understand more about Jesus and all He’s done for you. As you learn to trust and obey Him, He’ll be working with you and shaping your life into something beautiful.”

Aidan looked at the hardened clay his mom was holding. “He’ll probably do a better job shaping me than I did with that animal, huh?”

“Yes,” said Mom. “You can trust Him to shape you to be more like Jesus—and reading your Bible will help you understand more about what that looks like.” Mom set down the animal and picked up Aidan’s Bible. “So do you want to read a few verses now? You can let me know if you need help understanding them.”

“Okay,” said Aidan. “But don’t go far away. I’ll probably need help!” – A.J. Schut

How About You?

Does the Bible seem too hard for you to understand? Even though you don’t understand everything, it helps you learn more about God and what He’s doing in your life. So spend time reading it each day, and ask other Christians—like parents, teachers, or pastors—to explain some of the things you find difficult. As you learn and obey, God will shape you into the person He wants you to be.

Today’s Key Verse: Isaiah 55:11 My word…will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire.

Today’s Key Thought:

God’s Word shapes your life