Stampin' Sisters in Christ (VERY long post, personal)

Another wonderful devotion over at

Stampin' Sisters in Christ!!

I love, love going there every week and getting

my challenge!!

You have to hear what the hostess, Chris Olsen

has to say this week!!

Psalm 121:2-4 My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. 3 He will not let your foot slip--he who watches over you will not slumber; 4 indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

When I ponder over this verse, I think of how God is an ever present help not just when we are experiencing hardship but always!! Unlike us, He need not sleep and he knows every circumstance in our life and how it will turn out. A few weeks ago on my personal blog, I had shared the “Footprints” poem with my readers and how God is always with us. One of my dear friends and Christian sisters, Fhiona, shared a poem with a very similar message which I want to share with you today.

The Tea Cup

Love this story or not, you will not be able to have tea in a tea cup again without thinking of this.

There was a couple who took a trip to England to shop in a beautiful antique store to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary. They both liked antiques and pottery, and especially teacups. Spotting an exceptional cup, they asked "May we see that? We've never seen a cup quite so beautiful."

As the lady handed it to them, suddenly the teacup spoke, "You don't understand. I have not always been a teacup. There was a time when I was just a lump of red clay. My master took me and rolled me pounded and patted me over and over and I yelled out, "Don't do that. I don't like it! Let me alone." but he only smiled, and gently said; "Not yet!"

Then WHAM! I was placed on a spinning wheel and suddenly I was spun around and around and around. "Stop it! I'm getting so dizzy! I'm going to be sick!", I screamed. But the master only nodded and said, quietly; 'Not yet.'

He spun me and poked and prodded and bent me out of shape to suit himself and then he put me in the oven. I never felt such heat. I yelled and knocked and pounded at the door. "Help! Get me out of here!" I could see him through the opening and I could read his lips as he shook his head from side to side, 'Not yet'.

Then I thought I couldn't bear it another minute, the door opened. He carefully took me out and put me on the shelf, and I began to cool. Oh, that felt so good! "Ah, this is much better," I thought. But, after I cooled he picked me up and he brushed and painted me all over The fumes were horrible. I thought I would gag. 'Oh, please, Stop it, Stop, I cried”. He only shook his head and said. 'Not yet!' Then suddenly he put me back in to the oven. Only it was not like the first one. This was twice as hot and I just knew I would suffocate. I begged. I pleaded. I screamed. I cried I was convinced I would never make it. I was ready to give up. Just then the door opened and he took me out and again placed me on the shelf, where I cooled and waited and waited, wondering "What's he going to do to me next?"

An hour later he handed me a mirror and said 'Look at yourself.' And I did. I said, That's not me; that couldn't be me. It's beautiful. I'm beautiful!!!

Quietly he spoke: 'I want you to remember, then,' he said, 'I know it hurt to be rolled and pounded and patted, but had I just left you alone, you'd have dried up. I know it made you dizzy to spin around on the wheel, but if I had stopped, you would have crumbled. I know it hurt and it was hot and disagreeable in the oven, but if I hadn't put you there, you would have cracked. I know the fumes were bad when I brushed and painted you all over, but if I hadn't done that, you never would have hardened. You would not have had any color in your life. If I hadn't put you back in that second oven, you wouldn't have survived for long because the hardness would not have held. Now you are a finished product. Now you are what I had in mind when I first began with you.'”

The moral of this story is this: God knows what He's doing for each of us. He is the potter, and we are His clay. He will mould us and make us and expose us to just enough pressures of just the right kinds that we may be made into a flawless piece of work to fulfill His good, pleasing and perfect will. So when life seems hard, and you are being pounded and patted and pushed almost beyond endurance; when your world seems to be spinning out of control; when you feel like you are in a fiery furnace of trials; when life seems to "stink", try this.

Brew a cup of your favorite tea in your prettiest tea cup, sit down and think on this story and then, have a little talk with the Potter.

I SOOOOO needed this right now!!

As some of you may know,

my husband is a combat veteran, having served in Iraq for 15 months.

He was hit by an ied, and returned home

completely disabled. It has been very hard for my DD and I,

to say nothing of the things he struggles with all the time.

We have been going through a particularly tough time, and have been

having some very hard decisions to make

in order to make certain plans work in favor of our family.

I keep saying "God is in control!! He knows

where we are and what we need to accomplish to get through

the next few months. God is in control, God is in control!!"

But, I'm human and sometimes

I don't feel like anyone is in control!!

So I really needed this reminder today!!

Small story about me.

About 4 months after my husband went to Iraq,

I had an unusually bad week. The kind that nightmares are made of!!
In a matter of about 4 days, my water heater blew up,

my fridge stop cooling, my computer

crashed and showed it's wonderful blue screen of death.

I locked myself out of my car, not once but 3 times. Never had done that

before, or since, for that matter. On Saturday we went to bed and

by midnight my dd was up throwing up!! (That's DH's department,

otherwise, there's 2 of us throwing up!! Never developed that mama skill)

So after being up with her all night, I got a call about 9 Sunday morning.

It was pastor. (I was working as his secretary at the time)

He very calmly asked me where the bulletin was.

I had forgotten to fold them and put them out for the greeters!!

He gave me the next week off!!

See, worse then a nightmare!!

I went in to the office Tuesday morning to take care of a few things

and a very sweet lady from the church came by the office to see how I was doing!!
Boy was she sorry she did that!! I proceeded to tell her exactly how I was doing!!

Bless her heart!! Well, when I was all done, she looked at me as sweet

as sweet can be and said, "You know God is just using this to make you stronger!!"

I couldn't help it, I looked at her and said,

"I don't want to be strong right now, I want to be weak.  Really, really weak!!!"

Have you ever felt that way?? Totally spent.

And yet, GOD IS IN CONTROL and has everything

worked out for you!! We just have to remember

that when we are going through the potters wheel,

or into the oven or being made beautiful,

It's all part of His plan for us!!

And I know that I know, that I know, a couple things....

1. God says he will never leave us or forsake us!!
and 2. ALL things work together for good, to those who love

God, to those who are called according to His purpose!!

(that was a great devotional too...check out SSIC archives for that one!!)

The one place I know I always want to be is,

right where God  wants me to be!!

So then I read this devotion it was a wonderful reminder that

God is shaping and moulding me to be what He wants me to be.

Sorry this is so long. I know I don't usually write long,

and I defiantly don't usually write personal things,

but Chris' devotional really spoke to me!!

I think God had her write it just because He knew I needed it!!

Thank you, Chris!!

Thanks so much for reading this!!

I hope you have a wonderful, love filled week!!

Until next time............tootles!!
I forget to post the card when I post about this site!!

Here it is-we were to use a tea cup in the project!!

This is also for I Did it Creations-ribbon and lace.