When you receive a wonderful gift, it is only natural to be appreciative and to want to reciprocate; to give a gift back in kind. It can almost at times seem like an obligation; you have been given a gift and must therefore think of a way to “repay” that person for the gift. Of course, that runs counter to the whole concept and definition of a gift, but, be that as it may, the tendency is still there.
God has given you the gift of life, and it is natural (and right) that you would want to give back to Him. But, how can you give something to the Lord who already has everything and needs nothing from anyone? What can the clay offer to the Potter, except to be pliable and moldable in the Master’s hands, to be made into whatever He would desire that lump of clay to become?
You may struggle with trying to make yourself into what you know God wants you to be and yet find the task burdensome. It seems like the harder you try, the less progress you make in becoming that person. You look in the mirror and the same familiar face is looking back at you. It is not a lack of sincerity or even of effort that generally keeps you from being transformed more and more into that new person; it just comes down to who’s doing the work.
It’s not about the natural you and what you are capable of or why you are not able to change in this way or that. It’s not about whether you are qualified to become a new creation. One quick look at the people God chose to use for very special purposes throughout the Bible should be all of the reassurance you need that God can indeed do a great work in you.
Offer yourself to the Lord, not with reasons why you can never change or excuses for being the way you are now, but rather with faith, hope and assurance that the Lord can transform you into what He created you to be, that you can be what He sees when He looks at you and what He has declared you to be in His Word. Be that lump of clay that is yielded to the Potter’s hand to be shaped into something wonderful. God is at work in you!