Things the Potter Hates

Hate

            Many may find it hard to believe that there are things that God hates. We hear about the love of God, but to think that God has the capability to hate is hard for the most spiritually minded person and yet, there are things that God absolutely detests. Proverbs 6:16-19 ⁽¹⁶⁾There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: ⁽¹⁷⁾haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, ⁽¹⁸⁾a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, ⁽¹⁹⁾a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community. (NIV) Let’s break these things down in order to have a better understanding as to why God hates these things.

a.) Haughty eyes – Proverbs 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. (NIV) Pride is something that God absolutely hates. It was what entered Lucifer’s heart from the very beginning and caused his downfall because he wanted to be like God, even though there was not one thing that he could or ever created other than total chaos and destruction. Isaiah 14:12-15 ⁽¹²⁾How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! ⁽¹³⁾ You said in your heart, “I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon. ⁽¹⁴⁾I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.” ⁽¹⁵⁾But you are brought down to the realm of the dead, to the depths of the pit. (NIV)

When pride overtakes a person, they are no longer able to submit to the will of God. They think that they have all the answers and know everything that there is to know about anything. They are so arrogant and puffed up that even if they were in danger of harm, their arrogance would have them to forsake wise counsel. This has often been contributed to what caused the sinking of the Titanic in 1912. Numerous iceberg warnings had been sent, but due to the Titanic being considered and “unsinkable” ship, the warnings were ignored. Many people are on a collision with an iceberg today because they are looking at God’s warnings in the Bible, news, and nature, but are ignoring them due to their over-inflated egos. Psalm 51:17 My sacrifice, O God is a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise. (NIV)

b.) Lying tongue – Proverbs 12:22 The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in people who are trustworthy. (NIV) God hates lies and frowns upon those who do it. From the very beginning, the devil has been using deception to cause man to sin. He tricked Eve in the garden to think that God was being deceptive to her when in fact, he was the one mixing truth with error. Because the devil is the originator of falsehood, God despises anything or anyone that partakes in it. Jesus called the religious leaders of His time the children of the devil because they refused to walk in truth. John 8:44-45 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me? (NIV) God is truth and therefore, He cannot conflict with who He is. This is why He hates dishonesty and expects His children to walk upright in truth in order to resist deception from the enemy. Ephesians 6:13-14 Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place. (NIV)

c.) Hands that shed innocent blood – Jeremiah 7:31 They have built the high places of Topheth in the Valley of Ben Hinnom to burn their sons and daughters in the fire – something I did not command nor did it enter my mind. (NIV) God created life and when He made man, He breathed into him the breath of life and man became a living soul. Man would cease to exist if the breath of life did not exist in him. Cain, Adam and Eve’s firstborn son, committed the first murder in the Bible. He was jealous that his brother, Abel’s offering was acceptable to God and his wasn’t. Genesis 4:6-7 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door, it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.” (NIV) Cain chose not to heed the warning of God and therefore, conspired to kill his brother for he allowed his jealousy to cause him to sin. After luring his brother to the field, Cain attacked Abel and killed him. God did not take lightly what Cain had done and punished him for God hates the shedding of innocent blood. Genesis 4:10-11 The Lord said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground. Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. (NIV)

d.) A heart that devises wicked schemes – Micah 2:1-2 Woe to those who plan iniquity, to those who plot evil on their beds! At morning’s light they carry it out because it is in their power to do it. They covet fields and seize them, and houses, and take them. They defraud people of their homes, they rob them of their inheritance. (NIV) God does not like it when people plot evil against others. The Potter is a God of love, truth and mercy for this is what He shows to His children. Man, however, has allowed the devil to allow his mind to invent ways to do evil and have therefore angered God in the process. King David found this out all to well when he allowed his lust for another man’s wife to cause him to sin. 2 Samuel 11:2-3 One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful, and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, “She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” (NIV) God had blessed David to have a very prosperous kingdom. All that David could have ever wanted was given to him. Despite having received wonderful blessings from the Lord, David allowed his greed to overtake him. He wanted the wife of another man and plotted his death in order to have her. God, however, did not allow the deed to go unpunished and even though He forgave David, the sin that he had committed was felt all throughout his household. 2 Samuel 12:11-12 “This is what the Lord says: ‘Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity on you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight. You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before Israel.” (NIV)

e.) Feet that are quick to rush into evil – Psalm 21:11 Though they plot evil against you and devise wicked schemes, they cannot succeed. (NIV) God hates the sight of evil and this is why evil will have its final place in hell. The devil has been inspirational in helping ungodly men to plan wickedness throughout the earth and when Jesus was born, it was no different. The Magi had received word that the Son of God had been born, so they traveled to see Him. Upon their inquiry to find out exactly where He was, King Herod, ruler of the Jews at that time, had heard the news and wanted to find out for himself where this supposed new King of the Jews was to be born as well. Matthew 2:3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. (NIV) Herod felt threatened by the prophecy of a new King of the Jews. He, however, did not understand the prophecy that was given and thought that Jesus had come to rule as King on earth. In an effort to rid himself of what he thought of as future competition, he decided to have a mass slaughter of all the Jewish male babies ages two and under. Matthew 2:16 When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. (NIV) An angel of God warned Joseph in a dream to leave Bethlehem and go to Egypt until he was told that it was safe to return. King Herod had declared a bloodbath of the innocents and would stop at nothing to ensure that his throne would be safe. Nevertheless, King Herod’s reign came to an end along with his wickedness and finally Joseph, Mary and Jesus were able to return to their homeland. Matthew 2:19-20 After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were trying to take the child’s life are dead.” (NIV)

f.) A false witness who pours out lies – Ephesians 4:25 Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. (NIV) God has hated lies from the very beginning when it started with Satan deceiving Eve in the garden. Satan continues to deceive the whole world and will continue to do so to the very end. This, however, stirs up anger in God and the devil will one day have his great reward. Queen Jezebel was married to the wicked King Ahab and the couple was a duo of evil. King Ahab had set his eye on a field that he wanted to have, but the owner of the field, Naboth, did not wish to sell his family’s inheritance. 1 Kings 21:3-4 But Naboth replied, “The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my ancestors.” So Ahab went home, sullen and angry because Naboth the Jezreelite had said, “I will not give you the inheritance of my ancestors.” He lay on his bed sulking and refused to eat. (NIV) This attitude that King Ahab had showed his greed and pride. After all, he was the king of the land and could have had any other field that his heart desired. Once Queen Jezebel, his wicked wife heard of his disappointment, she devised a plan to get the field by having men to falsely accuse him of committing blaspheme against God. 1 Kings 21:8-10 ⁽⁸⁾So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name, placed his seal on them to the elders and nobles who lived in Naboth’s city with him. ⁽⁹⁾In those letters she wrote: “Proclaim a day of fasting and seat Naboth in a prominent place among the people. ⁽¹⁰⁾But seat two scoundrels opposite him and have them bring charges that he has cursed both God and the king. Then take him out and stone him to death.” (NIV) Queen Jezebel orchestrated this wicked event that caused an innocent man to die. But this as well as her other wicked deeds did not go unpunished, for in the end God allowed her to have a very untimely death. 2 Kings 9:30-35 ⁽³⁰⁾Then Jehu went to Jezreel. When Jezebel heard about it, she put on eye makeup, arranged her hair and looked out of a window. ⁽³¹⁾As Jehu entered the gate, she asked, “Have you come in peace, you Zimri, you murderer of your master?” ⁽³²⁾He looked up at the window and called out, “Who is on my side? Who?” Two or three eunuchs looked down at him. ⁽³³⁾”Throw her down!” Jehu said. So they threw her down, and some of her blood spattered the wall and the horses as they trampled her underfoot. ⁽³⁴⁾Jehu went in and ate and drank. “Take care of that cursed woman,” he said, “and bury her, for she was a king’s daughter.” ⁽³⁵⁾But when they went out to bury her, they found nothing except her skull, her feet and her hands. (NIV) It never pays to be quick to run to do evil.

g.) A person who stirs up conflict in the community – Leviticus 19:16 “Do not go around spreading slander among your people. “Do not do anything that endangers your neighbor’s life. I am the Lord.” (NIV) God hates busybodies and troublemakers. God is not a God of confusion and therefore, He sets His heart against those who do. Miriam, the sister of Moses found this out when she dared to complain against Moses. Moses had been appointed as leader over the Israelites and God used him in a mighty way to deliver them from the hands of Pharaoh. God had a special relationship with Moses and even though Moses never saw God’s face, he was allowed to be in God’s presence directly as was in the case when he was given the Ten Commandments directly from God himself. Exodus 31:18 When the Lord finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, he gave him the two tablets of the Testimony, the tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God. (NIV) God had chosen Moses to be the one to lead and give the Children of Israel His words and commands, but Miriam and Aaron opposed him. Miriam and Aaron first complained that Moses had married a Cushite (black woman), which he had done prior to him becoming their leader. Next, they complained that he was not the only one with whom God has spoken to, but had spoken to them as well. Nevertheless, Moses did not think more of himself than he should and was a very humble man. This angered God and was dealt with swiftly. Numbers 12:5-8 ⁽⁵⁾Then the Lord came down in a pillar of cloud, he stood at the entrance to the tent and summoned Aaron and Miriam. When the two of them stepped forward, ⁽⁶⁾he said, “Listen to my words: “When there is a prophet among you, I, the Lord, reveal myself to them in visions, I speak to them in dreams. ⁽⁷⁾But this is not true of my servant Moses, he is faithful in all my house. ⁽⁸⁾With him I speak face to face, clearly and not in riddles, he sees the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?” (NIV) The brother and sister had indeed angered the Lord and Miriam was struck with leprosy. Moses, however, prayed for his sister to be shown mercy and after seven days, she was healed. 

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The Potter and the Clay

The Potter and the Clay

You started out with nothing to create everything.

An empty space it was, but life, You did bring.

You spoke into existence the earth that came to be.

Yet, You did something different when it came to me.

You took Your hands and formed me in the image of You.

No one has my DNA, even if we were born in two.

You shaped and molded me to be Your masterpiece.

A Divine inspiration, my praises to You will never cease.

You are the Potter and I am Your clay.

You molded and made me into what I am today.

You tried me in the fire and as I softened to Your will,

With that same heat You made me stronger, the vessel You

have filled.

K L Rich

Emotions of the Potter

Emotions of the Potter

Does the Potter have emotions?

            God made man to be in His image and likeness. Therefore, we can be assured that God does indeed have emotions, due to the fact that man has them. There are various types of emotions that God displayed in the Bible. What are they? Let’s break some of them down in order to have a better understanding of the Potter in regards to who He is.

Happiness

When God created the universe, He took great pleasure in all that He had made. Out of darkness, He created light. A separation of water became the sky and the sea. He made dry land on which the trees, flowers and plants would grow. He created birds in the sky, beasts of the field and animals that lived in the sea. God made the sun to light the day and the moon and stars to light the night. And finally, He created man from the dust of the ground. God took a look at all that He had created and as an earthly potter, who has completed a masterpiece, our Potter declared that everything was good. Genesis 1:31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning the sixth day. (NIV) There was a sense of satisfaction that God felt. The Potter was therefore, happy with His one of a kind work of genius.

Grief

          After the fall of man, the human race became increasingly wicked over time. There seemed to be nothing that man’s evil mind would not think of doing. This grieved the heart of God that His wonderful creation had turned into an infestation of filth and depravity of every kind. Genesis 6:5-6 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. (NIV) God took this to heart. He wanted nothing but the absolute best for His creation. He knew that life would be different, outside of the perfect garden that He had originally placed man in, due to the damaging effects of sin. Nevertheless, God still wanted man to live a happy and prosperous life free of sinful indulgences. He never wanted man to embrace such wickedness on the high level that they did. Unfortunately, man was not concerned with how his evil choices affected God. In his selfishness, he allowed evil to reign supreme and God grieved so much, that the pain stirred at the core of His heart where man’s choices affected Him the most. 

Anger

            The Children of Israel had been enslaved by the Egyptians for 400 years, but God sent Moses to save His children from bondage. After they were led through the Red Sea, God had them to go to the desert where they stayed for 40 years. While there, God gave Moses the 10 Commandments for them to abide by as part of His ordinances that He took out the time to write with His own finger on tables made of stone. Exodus 31:18 When the Lord finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, he gave him the two tablets of the Testimony, the tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God. (NIV) These were not just mere suggestions that were handwritten, but were guidelines that the Lord required as part of their obedience to Him because they were His chosen people and were to set an example for other nations. As part of these commandments, they were told to not have foreign gods, but to worship Him alone. Exodus 20:1-4 ⁽¹⁾And God spoke all these words: ⁽²⁾”I am the Lord you God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. ⁽³⁾You shall have not other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below.” (NIV)

            God had a requirement of His children and that was to remain faithful to Him alone. He did not want them to worship others gods made of wood and stone that could do nothing for them. He was the One who rescued them from slavery and to whom they owed their total adoration to. Despite the guidelines that God had given them, Israel rebelled and turned against God time and time again. This angered the Lord. 2 Kings 17:10-12 ⁽¹⁰⁾They set up sacred stones and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every spreading tree. ⁽¹¹⁾At every high place they burned incense , as the nations whom the Lord had driven out before them had done. They did wicked things that provoked the Lord to anger. ⁽¹²⁾They worshipped  idols,  though the Lord had said, “You shall not do this.” (NIV) Due to their disobedience, God allowed them to be taken captive by their enemies every time they turned from Him. God is not quick to anger, but in His anger He shows the love that He has for His children. Psalm 103:7-10 ⁽⁷⁾He made known to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel: ⁽⁸⁾The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. ⁽⁹⁾He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; ⁽¹⁰⁾he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. (NIV)

            God’s anger is not like man’s anger in which it can cause a person to sin. God’s anger is a righteous anger in which He wants our total obedience to Him. Because He is our Potter, He desires that His children be faithful and honor the guidelines that He set forth for our lives due to His love and concern for us. Underneath the anger that God feels in grief in knowing that we did not accept His absolute best for our lives.

Jealousy

            With understanding the anger of God comes understanding His jealousy towards His children. God does not display jealousy in the sense that man does, for we could never possess anything that God would be jealous of. Nevertheless, He is jealous for His children in that He wants us to serve only Him because He knows that to worship another god is to condemn ourselves to death and destruction. Exodus 20:5-6 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments. (NIV) The jealousy that God displays for His children is actually His manifestation of compassion in that He protects us from harm that would otherwise occur if He did not have His hands of protection in place. That protection can be in both the spiritual and the natural. Psalm 91:1-3 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadows of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. (NIV)

            When God created man, He knew that the devil was lurking around to destroy him. God in all His splendor wanted nothing but the absolute best for His children and as with any good parent, He, who is our Heavenly Father, wanted to protect us from what He knew would lead to destruction and death. Therefore, when God gave the Ten Commandments, and within them said that we were not to worship any other gods but Him, it was for our own protection. God knew that the devil would try to infiltrate the minds of His people by having them to do every kind of wicked because their minds would not be on pleasing God, but on pleasing themselves. Genesis 6:5 The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. (NIV) The devil could not succeed in turning all of Heaven against God, so in what he failed to do in Heaven, he tried to complete here on earth.

            There are only two choices of worship and God refuses to be second place. He burns with jealousy when we turn from His ordinances for He knows that the devil is always lurking around to harm us. 1 Peter 5:8 Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. (NIV) The devil’s theme is to “Do as thou wilt,” but God says to humble yourself and obey Him for loves and cares for you. Deuteronomy 4:23-24 Be careful not to forget the covenant of the Lord your God that he made with you; do not make for yourselves an idol in the form of anything the Lord your God has forbidden. For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God. (NIV)

           

Compassion

            The Potter is a God of compassion. He shows grace and mercy towards His children regardless of how many times we mess up. Psalm 145:8-9 The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. The Lord is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made. (NIV) God could have easily wiped man off the face of the earth when he sinned, but God did not do that. He showed such great concern for man that He devised a plan to save him from experiencing an eternity without Him. God’s compassion for His children is shown all throughout nature and beyond. From the touch of a flower to the fresh breeze that blows by, God’s heart can be felt everywhere.

            God’s compassion was shown for the Children of Israel when they had been taken into captivity for 400 years. They suffered mightily at the hands of Pharaoh and cried out to God to deliver them from their oppression. The Egyptians were very harsh with them and made their lives miserable, but God had empathy for their pain and instructed Moses to deliver them. Exodus 34:5-7 ⁽⁵⁾Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. ⁽⁶⁾And he passed in front of Moses proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, ⁽⁷⁾maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.” (NIV) God does not turn a deaf ear to His children when they walk in obedience to His will, but He shows Himself in the tiniest of ways that He is there and that He cares.

            God shows compassion in many ways for this is who He is. God’s compassion is not based upon our deserving it for we have failed Him many times. Nevertheless, He is our Creator and picks us back up in His display of compassion towards us in order to help us to get back on the right path. God’s kindness is manifested every day when we wake up and have the ability to say, “Thank you.” Joel 2:13 Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents form sending calamity. (NIV) There have been many times that God could have punished man due to his wickedness by sending judgments. But due to His great compassion, God has withheld what was rightly due in an effort to give us time to repent and to turn our hearts back towards Him. 

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Communication with the Potter

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COMMUNICATION WITH THE POTTER

Being a potter was a popular occupation during Biblical times. Most potters in the Bible seemingly worked for and by themselves; therefore, a potter was considered an entrepreneur. However, the vessels that were created had a uniqueness that allowed them to be properly used for their designed purpose. Therefore, a cup was not made into jug, a jug was not made into a jar, but every vessel was crafted in accordance to its appropriate use for what the potter had in mind. God is the Entrepreneur of our lives. He has given us gifts to use independently, while collectively for the Kingdom building for we are the workers of His vineyard. Luke 10:2 He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” (NIV)

How do we communicate with the Potter?

A potter is unable to talk to the clay in order for it to become a vessel. Well, let’s just say for instance the potter did talk to the clay, I doubt that he would get much of a response. Therefore, the potter has to use his hands as his form of communication with the clay. A potter has to be in tune with the characteristics of the clay in order to mold it into the vessel that he desires. For example, there are various types of clays, which we will go into in another chapter, that serve for different uses and require different types of heating and molding. The potter’s hands is his way of communicating with the clay because the potter understands what the clay needs in order to reach its full potential. This is the same way with God.

     God knows what we need because He made us and unlike clay, we are able to communicate our needs and wants to Him. Matthew 7:7 Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened for you. (NIV) However, communication with the Potter is not just about asking and receiving, although God does want us to make our requests known to Him, but it is about having a relationship with Him. John 1:10-13 ⁽¹⁰⁾He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. ⁽¹¹⁾He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. ⁽¹²⁾Yet to all who received him, to those believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God – ⁽¹³⁾children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. (NIV) God wants us to know, receive, and believe in Him. We are to  talk to Him when times are good, bad, and/or in between for He cares about us.

God is a good listener. He never tells your conversation to anyone else unless it is to receive an answer. He takes every word that comes from your mouth into consideration. His thoughts are not like our thoughts where we may lose focus when someone else is talking to us, God’s ears listen intensely. Isaiah 55:8-9 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (NIV) There are times, however, that God seemingly is not responding. Nevertheless, when He is silent, that means that He is already working on your behalf. All you have to do is wait patiently for the answer. Psalm 27:14 Wait for the Lord, be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. (NIV)

Answers to pray falls into three main categories. They are yes, no, and wait. A “yes” is given when God agrees that you will have what you asked for. Mark 11:24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. (NIV) However, you must never ask for something that goes against His laws or His will. God cannot grant something that goes opposite of His word, for His word stands forever. 1 John 5:14-15 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that is we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us – whatever we ask – we know that we have what we asked of him. (NIV)

A “no” is given when God sees that what you are asking for is not in your best interest, goes against His laws, or there’s unconfessed sin in your life. Psalm 66:18 If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. (NIV) Because God desires the best for His children, He will never give you anything that will harm you nor take you away from Him. Many people have not received a desired answer to a prayer because if God had given it to them, they would have turned that answered request into their god. And as we know, God is a jealous God and will never give you something that will be placed first in your life ahead of Him. Exodus 20:3-6 ⁽³⁾”You shall have no other gods before me. ⁽⁴⁾You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. ⁽⁵⁾You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who that me, ⁽⁶⁾but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments. (NIV)

A “no” is sometimes given when God sees that He has better plans for your life than what you requested. Proverbs 19:21 Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails. (NIV) God never says “no” to be cruel, but He knows the end from the beginning; therefore, His way is the best way if we allow Him to be the leader of our lives. We are not able to see the future, but because we have a God who can, we must place our trust in him.

A “no” is also given when an individual has not stopped indulging in sin, which also includes the sin of unforgiveness. Sometimes, we block our own blessings because we refuse to get our hearts right with God and others. Whatever sins that we may commit, we must confess them before God and turn from our wicked ways. If one of those sins happen to be the sin of unforgiveness, God wants that person to get it right before coming to Him about anything. Matthew 5:23-24 “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.” (NIV)

Another answer that God gives is “wait,” which is a delayed yes. You may ask God for something and the answer is yes, but the timing is not right. God may feel that you’re not ready for what He has planned for you and therefore, the answer, even though it is a yes, is delayed until His timing deems that you’re ready. Isaiah 40:31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (KJV) We are to wait patiently upon the Lord until He gives us the desires of our hearts. God is a timely God and whatever one has asked for, He will ensure that it comes right on time.

God wants us to communicate with Him as we do family, friends, and loved ones for He never gets tired, but is there all the time ready to listen. Psalm 121:4-5 Indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber not sleep. The Lord watches over you – the Lord is your shade at your right hand. (NIV) You may ask, “How do I know that God hears me?” He has told us in His word that He hears us even while we are still speaking. That means that He doesn’t have to wait till you’ve finished. He already knows your thoughts before you do. Isaiah 65:24 Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.

How do we hear and know the Potter’s voice?

When the potter is molding his vessel, he knows that it is an object that cannot respond to him. Even if he formed the clay to have eyes, it could not see; ears, it could not hear; a head, it could not think; a mouth, it could not talk. Its sole purpose is to be used for the potter’s intent of either to hold something, for display or some other function. However, When God, our potter made us from the dust of the ground, He created us in a manner that we can speak, think, see, and hear His voice. We see this in the book of Genesis that when God created Adam He also spoke to him. Genesis 2:16 And The Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of Good and evil, for when you eat of it, you will surely die.” (NIV) Therefore, Adam recognized the voice of God and God knew that Adam had the capability to understand what He was saying. Adam immediately recognized the voice of the Potter.

Audible

The Potter’s voice can be heard in several different ways. The first is audibly. God sometimes talks to people in an audible voice just as you may talk to someone over the phone and/or face-to-face. He talked audibly to Moses through the burning bush when giving direction concerning his leading of the Children of Israel. Exodus 3:4-6 ⁽⁴⁾When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.” ⁽⁵⁾”Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” ⁽⁶⁾Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob,” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God. (NIV) Many people may find it hard to believe that the God of the universe will speak directly to someone, but indeed He still does.

Thought Process

The Potter sometimes places thoughts in a person’s mind as a way of communication. Proverbs 16:3 Commit they works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established. (NIV) If we allow our thoughts to always be on God, He will talk to us by placing His words upon our hearts and minds without ever uttering a verbal word. For example, many people have been saved from destruction, of some kind, due to an urging in their spirit to not go down a certain path. That urging was from God. Because the Potter is our Shepherd, He leads us in the way that we should go. Many choices that people have made in life, that turned out for the good, where not always of their own doing, but was due to the prompting of the Holy Spirit. John 16:13-14 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own, he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. (NIV)

Dreams and Visions

            There are times when the Potter wants to speak to His children and therefore, He does so through dreams and visions. In a dream, a person is asleep, but experiences various scenes taking place as in a movie. God used two dreams to speak to Pharaoh during Joseph’s stay in Egypt to warn him of a famine that would come to the land. Genesis 41:1-4 ⁽¹⁾When two full years had passed, Pharaoh had a dream: He was standing by the Nile, ⁽²⁾when out of the river there came up seven cows, sleek and fat, and they grazed among the reeds. ⁽³⁾After them, seven other cows, ugly and gaunt, came up out of the Nile and stood beside those on the riverbank. ⁽⁴⁾And the cows that were ugly and gaunt ate up the seven sleek, fat cows. Then Pharaoh woke up. (NIV) God speaks to everyone differently, but in this case, God chose the method of communication through a dream and then God communicated the interpretation to Joseph through his thoughts in order for it to be given to Pharaoh. Because Pharaoh heeded the warning, Egypt and other countries were saved from hunger, death and disease.

            God also used visions as a method of communication. Visions are similar to dreams, with the exception that it takes place while the person is awake. Daniel 10:1 In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia, a revelation was given to Daniel (who was called Belteshazzar). Its message was true and it concerned a great war. The understanding of the message came to him in a vision. (NIV) God quite often communicated with Daniel through dreams and visions. Why does God prefer to communicate using one method over another is only known to Him, but what matters is that we are able to know when it is the Potter who is speaking.