The intentions of a child are always so obvious. I think of my own children and how I can tell when they are about to do something wrong. Or if they really don’t mean it with their full heart if they have to apologize to one another or even to me for that matter. Children are obvious whether it be good for them or not. I got thinking about my own heart and what it looks like in comparison to the innocence of the child mentioned in Matthew 23.
2 Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. 3 Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. 4 So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.”
~Matthew 18:2-4
It says in Deut 31:21 “…I know the intentions of these people, even now before they have entered the land I swore to give them.”
God knows my heart better than I do. He knows my true intentions before they are even acted out or made obvious to anyone else, He also knows what awaits my intentions. Further into the book of Matthew in chapter 23 Jesus says several times over to the Pharisees, “What sorrow awaits you.”
25 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and self-indulgence!
~Matthew 23:25
This echoes in my heart deeply. As I kept reading the words over and over I heard it as a question, “What sorrow awaits you?” It’s a grave reminder that I need to allow God to work in my heart and be honest with Him since He knows my true intentions anyway. I may not be obvious to others but I am obvious to Him. I need to allow God to speak to me and convict me about what the inside of my cup looks like. I need to be obedient to the point that my intentions are obedient as well. Sometimes we can chase away prompting from the Holy Spirit and not allow Him to speak to us whether it be through His Word, or someone in our lives He is using to challenge us. Self protection is a big stumbling block. Especially for someone like myself who always intends to be ‘in control’. I personally need to be careful that my intentions are not to hear what I want to hear but that I am willing to be obedient to whatever I am hearing from God. I love this verse, since this blog is called ‘In the Clay’ I thought it was perfectly fitting:
How foolish can you be? He is the Potter, and he is certainly greater than you, the clay! Should the created thing say of the one who made it, “He didn’t make me”? Does a jar ever say, “The potter who made me is stupid”?
~Isaiah 29:16
I want to come to the Father daily like a child longing to see their daddy with no inhibitions, no agenda, no selfish desires but just longing to be molded by the potter and obedient to whatever that looks like because He knows what awaits me. I want to stop questioning God and take more time to adore Him and thank Him for all of His undeserving grace He has poured into me.
What awaits you my friend? It’s obvious to God, He knows what awaits you and He knows the intentions of your heart.
In the clay,
Chantal Dube