The Master Potter

The Master Potter

Dearly Beeloveds,

Just before lockdown, I had the privilege of being invited to a pottery workshop by a very talented lady.  

Ronel Bakker makes the most beautifully crafted, totally out-of-the-box ceramic pottery items. A true artist in every sense of the word! What a blessing it was to be invited and to experience some first-hand lessons from one of the country’s leading pottery artists. 

You can have a peep at some of Ronel’s beautiful artworks on this link:

https://www.facebook.com/RonelBakkerCeramics/

Aside from the wonderful experience of having a sponsored weekend away all to myself under the mountains (the first one in a long time!), I met some truly inspiring people and had a wonderful heart-to-heart connection with the ladies who attended the workshop with me.

I realised from the start that this was no ordinary weekend away, and that our Father was actively working – His Holy Spirit present with us and meeting with every one of us there in a unique way.  Of course, as usual, Father was once again painting what I did not realise at the time to be a prophetic picture with the item I was creating.  It was also a hint of what would happen next in Beeloved’s story…

The lovely ladies who shared the adventure with me

This was my beautiful artwork… before it went into the fire. 

This was the fire…thoroughly hot

In the furnace with all the other artworks.  

A prophetic picture of how each of our works will one day be tested…

…each one’s work will be clearly shown [for what it is]; for the day [of judgment] will disclose it, because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality and character and worth of each person’s work. 1 Corinthians 3:13

Sadly,…… (or gladly, maybe?), this is all that remained of my artwork afterwards.  According to Ronel, this is a common occurrence for a potter.  You simply never know which of your artworks will survive the fire or not!

This was the verse that I inscribed on the bottom of my artwork:

The words and promises of the Lord are pure words, like silver refined in an earthen furnace, purified seven times over.  Psalm 12:6

Mmmm. Most of our close friends who are familiar with our walk and story know that the last couple of years have not been quite a walk in the park for us Joneses.  Truly, every promise of God and every word He has spoken over us has been tested and tested again… in the fire!  And truly, for me, it felt like all that has remained of me seemed to be a few scatters of who I am and what I believe… lying flat in the ashes. 

Sometimes, the master potter chooses to start over.

O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter does? says the Lord. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel.  Jeremiah 18:3‭-‬4‭, ‬6  


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