In Times of Quitting Page 9
Mark 10:27
And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.
Life in this old world will never be totally and completely fair or just. And it wasn’t even in the days when Jesus Christ walked this old earth. However, there is one thing. Nails bent back in the days of Jesus just as they do today. With the Lord’s help we can make it. It doesn’t matter if we never drive a straight nail in; God will be with us. All we have to do is put forth the effort with our hearts and hold on to His nailed scared hands.
John 20:24-29
But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe. And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.
No matter how hard this old life may be or how much we may seem to go through, there is no one who has suffered, felt the agony of pain and the awesome hurt of life more than that of Jesus Christ the Son of God. That day upon Calvary Hill nearly two thousand years ago, they hung Jesus Christ upon the cross and drove nails in His hands and feet [they probably didn’t mis-lick or bend a nail]. He gave His life for us that through Him we could be forgiven of our sins and live life eternally. He, an innocent man who did no wrong and sinned not once, was nailed upon a wooden cross because of us. We can always look around us and see others in worse shape than we are. But, if we were to look around and see no one, we need to look to Christ on the cross [we help put Him there], read God’s word, open our heart and see with the Holy Spirit. If we ever feel as useless as a bent nail and feel like giving up or quitting all we have to do is remember God loves us, Jesus loves us and regardless of it all we are important to Him. He loves us just as we are no matter how much we allow the devil and this world to bend us out of shape.
John 3:16-17
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
We may be faced with some hard things in life, today, and we are not sure that we are going to be able to make it. We may be afraid we’ll bend under the pressure. Hold true to the Lord, pray and get into His Holy word and let it work. We need to take a stand, be not moved and hold on to God’s unchanging hand because somehow, some way He will bring us through.
Psalm 91:1-11
He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
We can’t be bent, nicked or slightly crooked by what the world and the devil brings against us. But, be ye steadfast, straight and bold on what God has already done for us and what He promised He will do. It’s not the easy things that mold us in life, it’s the hard things.
I Peter 1:7
That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:
Sometimes the devil will try to hammer us down with life’s trials and troubles. If we are not careful, he will make us feel so useless and steal away all of our hope. He creates impossibilities in our lives that we will not be able to overcome because of our doubt and unbelief. He will make things look useless, try to make us give up and quit. But, it is then when we should look beyond it all unto Christ our Lord, reach up and take the victory in Jesus so that we can come out from it and press forward in our daily lives.
Psalm 121:1-8
I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber. Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is thy keeper: the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand. The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul. The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.
There are times when we can’t pull the bent nail out and wind up breaking the nail off in the wood. But, no matter how it is, we can hardly drive a bent nail. In life there are things we can’t change. No matter how hard we try, we are just stuck with them. It is then that we accept them with the Lord and go on with our lives. God has blessed us with a life – a life of choices. We are to choose our way and it is up to us to make the choice. Sometimes, some choices are harder to make and bear than others. Fortunately, those choices that we allow God to help us with will make all the difference in the world. Sure, we are going to have some tough breaks; a lot of them we will not want or even accept. Some we will have to take with a grain of salt on bent knees. However, there are also the good breaks with special blessings that go a long way. Praise God! But, we still need to watch out for the nails [bent and broke off] that are sticking up and waiting for us. That is the devil with his traps, snares and pits waiting to bring us down.
I Peter 5:6-8
Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
At times, bent nails are hard to drive. They take a little extra effort, work and time to get through. But, isn’t it true, all good things are worth waiting for.
Romans 8:28
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
There is one thing about it; the nail must be straight if it is to b
e driven in. Our walk with the Lord should be a straight and narrow daily walk to work more efficiently in our life. It is a way of holiness and righteous living. It is a way of repentance, humbleness and a servant spirit. It is by no means a way of curves and bends but that of a straightaway. We are to separate ourselves from the things of the world, the pride of life, the lust of the eyes and the lust of the flesh. We are to be holy people.
I Peter 2:9
But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:
We are in the world. But, we are not to be of the world. We are to be a separate people. Sure [Christians] we will mis-lick a lick in life from time to time. We will bend a little here and there. Fortunately, we do not have to stay bent. We can call out unto the Lord, repent, straighten up and continue for the Lord. Those who allow the devil to take their life and bend it is what makes them want to give up and quit. They just give in to it, accept it and do nothing about it. That is where we all fail. Arise above it! We have to straighten that which needs straightening, lower that which needs lowering and pick up our cross daily for the cause and testimony of Christ our Lord. Serve Him [Christ our Lord] with all our heart, mind, soul and strength.
Hebrews 12:1-2
Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
We have all probably felt about as useless as a bent nail by just lying around, bent or broken, with no dreams or hopes and all seems lost or so far away. Cheer up and lift that frown into a smile. God is not finished working with us yet. Sure, we may have lost a few battles. Unfortunately, it is an uphill struggle most of the time. We can always look back to where God has brought us from and open the eyes of our heart to where He is taking us. We can win by praising the glory of God with the melody of song in our heart and letting our Spirit be free and at liberty. For in Christ, and in no other, we will make it because God lies just beyond the tips of our fingers.
Matthew 17:20-21
And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.
Do we believe that God can do anything and there is nothing in the world He can’t do? If so, we should believe that God is bigger than the mountains we are facing and the bends in our life that seem impossible. If we believe, the Lord can take care of our needs and problems. Have we the faith to straighten the bends in our life? Can we believe? Life is a lot like a bent nail. But, no one can say we can’t endure it and make it through. With the Lord’s help, the complete willingness of our willpower and our determination, we too [with the Lord’s help] can reach our ultimate goals and achieve our highest accomplishments in this life; if we will submit our will unto His (Lord, thy will be done). If, in this life, we have been dealt a bent nail as it may seem to us, there are only two things that we (or any of us) can do. First, we can give in, accept it, feel sorry for our self and suffer through life the best way we can [living in misery]. Secondly, we can take hold of God’s hand, pick ourselves up from where we are, straighten what we can and let Lord have what we can’t do. We can face the world with the Lord and with victory in Him by faith. For greater is he that is in me, than he that is in the world. We have the choice. We can stay bent and be useless or we can straighten up and finish the job that the Lord would have us do. It is no wonder that those of us with the bent nail syndrome live in defeat and stay defeated. Our attitudes are in doubt. Our outlooks and visions are dull and hopeless; they speak and live negatively. Our lives are like a rainbow with no color. God is alive and in control although we may not always see it or understand. But, He is alive and Jesus Christ His son is alive and sits beside Him in the heavens above watching over us all. Believe it or not, it’s not over and it’s not finished. We, as born again believers in Christ, have not yet begun to live.
Life is liken sometimes to a bent nail. We don’t know when life’s hammer will mis-lick and strike us with a blow that will bend us out of shape. We never know how many hard licks we’ll be able to take before the one that comes along and bends us double. A lot of the time in life [when those times come], it will leave us hopeless, feeling useless with low self-esteem and our willpower will fade away. It is so easy, too easy at times, to give in and give up.
Ephesians 6:10-18
Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
When we face this world, the devil and this life, we had better be prepared at all times for we know not what lies ahead. We may not see the battles right away all the time but they are out there waiting for us. The better prepared we are to face the battles, the better the outcome will be. Never underestimate the devil or take him for granted. He has our number and fortunately for us, God has his. Sometimes we are driven by that which life strikes us with; if we are not careful, we will be bent and weakened. The devil works on us in many ways. A lot of the time, he slowly pulls us down little by little, battle by battle and struggle by struggle. He uses our weaknesses against us to get us where he wants us and then he will drop the hammer on us – bang! Sometimes the fall is hard and sometimes it’s not too bad. It all depends on how strong we are in the Lord at the time. While the devil prepares to lower the big bang on us, he is slowly tearing down our faith with doubt, wearing out our patience, tiring us out physically and choking us with negativity all around us. At the same time, God is preparing a way of escape for His people. So, we have to be ready at all times with our heart and eyes upon the Lord and His way of escape, lest we fall into the devil’s trap. A lot of strong nails have bent with a lot less weight. Is it the weight of the hammer that bends the nail or is it the mis-lick of the hammer? Or, is it both?
When the devil blacks our eye, we black his. When he brings our past up to us, we need to tell him of his future. When he tries to make us feel useless and unworthy, we have to hold our head up and lift your heart and spirit and let the devil know we are a child of the King; the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.
Isaiah 43:1-2
But now thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.
Life has its trying moments, temptations and fears. But, it is how we face them that will determine our outcome. I pray we will all face them with Jesus. Sometimes in life we are dr
iven hard. At times, it is so fast that we can’t keep up. Other times, it is a slow steady pounding. It slowly weakens us down, one lick at a time, into a bend [a breaking point]. There is no way that we will ever be able to give our full potential, put forth our best effort and accomplish our life’s goals and ambitions until we straighten out the bends in our lives.
Jeremiah 18:1-6
The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words. Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the Lord. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel.
I doesn’t matter who we are, what we do or where we are from. We all are in need of some work in our lives. None of us are perfect. We are all marred clay in the hands of a living God. It is up to us to let go and let God mold and shape us into that he would have us be which is in His likeness through His son Jesus. It is those bends of life’s troubles, trials and temptations that the Lord uses to make us a tool, an instrument or a vessel that would be pleasing to Him. We, through the Lord, can accomplish His will and purpose in our life and in the things He would have us do. We may be liken unto an old rusty bent nail lying around in an old nail box, lying on the floor, being walked around, stepped on or surrounded by sawdust. However, the carpenter’s eye may see us and he may pick us up. He will also take his hammer, peck on us a bit, stand us up on end and then drive us into a pretty piece of furniture. That is the same way it is with God when He takes a sinner person and does a work in their life. If we are a born again Christian, we know what that means. We probably think we have all lived. It is not until we give our heart and life to Jesus that we find out what life is all about and begins to really live. No, it will not be trouble free or a bed of roses. Honestly, it will seem more against us now than ever before. Nothing can take the place of the joy of our spirit, the love in our heart, the peace of mind and peace with God we experience. Sure, we mess up at times; we fail and let life and the devil get us down. But, through it all, the Lord can help us keep trying. Sure, we have all wanted to quit, give up and give in. Nevertheless, when that time comes, we look back to where God has brought us from and what all He has done for us and that should straighten any nail. Certainly, the load will get hard to bear and the cross will get heavy but what do we really have to go back to? It’s definite, if the Lord lets us live on, tomorrow there will be more bends and breaking points and will continue day after day. But, we can take the things we have learned, through God’s word and spirit, from each of those bends behind and use those things to help bring us the victory over future bends that we have not faced. The devil can’t do anything to us except that which we allow him.
Matthew 10:26
Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known.
Often times, we say we can’t make it and we are not strong enough to bear it. We are right. We can’t do it on our own. We have to let God help us; it is the only way.
During our life, we may only see the dust from our journey. But, it is the joy in our heart to know and see the Lord stir the winds and know we are a part of it.
− b. a. troutt
Time and time again we are hit upon and struck bent. It weakens us down to our lowest point and at the same time pulls up and through the side. Why! Because we give up and give in so easily. Not only does the devil know our weaknesses but so does God. The Lord allows the devil to come against us with our problems not to punish us but so we can learn to overcome them through Him. How can we overcome something if we don’t face it? If we are not confronted with it, how can we deal with it? God wants us totally and completely. The Lord does not want the devil to have any kind of stronghold on us that will take us away from Him in any way. No matter what our problems may be, we will have to deal with them in some way or another regardless of how big or small they are. Sometimes it’s the little problems we don’t think too much about that are usually harder to overcome and gives us the most trouble. Time and time again, we are struck with life’s hammer and hit upon every side with one thing or another. Is there no rest for the weary?
Matthew 11:28-30
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
If God knew we couldn’t bear our load or our cross with His help, it’s doubtful He would have ever sent us out. A lot of the load we bear is not put on us by the Lord but by the choices we choose in life. However, there is one thing about it, we don’t have to bear it alone, praise God. The Lord will help us and be with us. He will see us through. All we have to do is pray and ask. There are those times in life that we feel thrown aside, forgotten, abandoned, deserted and left all alone. Sometimes it seems like God is a million miles away and there is not a friend a mile around. It is frightful, in ways, if we think about it. It seems like we are going under water for the third time when we finally decide to cry out for help and it seems like no one hears our cries. Just remember, God does. We may be bent, broken, doubled up and falling to pieces when suddenly we hear the still voice of God calling us by name and telling us He will never leave or forsake us because He is thy God. That makes all the difference in the world. Our heart and spirit begins to stir and we begin to look at things in a different light; it makes them appear clearer than ever before. When the Holy Spirit speaks to us through God’s spirit and His Holy word, we can be sure of one thing: If we will believe, our belief can drive away the storm clouds and lift our heart and spirit in to peace, joy and love; it can put a smile on our face. But, we must believe. Such as a nail cannot straighten itself without the help of the hammer, we cannot straighten ourselves without God the Father and His son Jesus Christ. We can do all we can in our power and strength to overcome and straighten things out. Nonetheless, it is the touch from God the Father that will make all the difference. We should do all that we can within our power to help ourselves. Yet, at the same time, we have to give it to the Lord to help us and for Him to give us what we can’t, help. There are some things in our life that are so small that we think we can change with little or no effort; we wish. By holding on to the small things we find they become a bigger problem for us and cause us more trouble than the bigger things. Then, why don’t we let go and let God? Why? Because we have allowed the little things to become a bend in our lives, we have given in to them and accepted them; they have become a part of us (Example: addictions and habits). It’s not the nail in our life that is the problem; it’s the bend we allow in the nail that has conquered us. Sure, sometimes we can’t walk away. Why? It is because of weakness, desire or love, lack of willpower, lack of faith and the lack of little to no determination. As long as we allow these bends to rule over us, we will not be any better than the bent nail. We will become useless. We must first change our love of it to the complete love of God. Then we should open our eyes and come to the realization of the truth which is we have a problem. We must face it and take it to the Lord. If we are not careful, little problems sometimes lead to bigger ones. Just like the nail can’t straighten itself without the hammer, we can’t straighten our self without the Lord. When big problems come along, most of us seem to make it through, over time, some way or another. However, some of the big problems seem to be more than we can bear. Fortunately, with the Lord’s help, we can endure to the end. It seems like, a lot of the time, it’s always the little things that get next to us and are harder to shake. Could it be the choice w
e choose, that of the devil, which brings us into bondage? By being a partaker of sin and evil, we give over to our fleshly and selfish desires. If we are not careful, we are held captive by it.
Galatians 5:1
Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
It is only by and through the Lord Jesus Christ the son of God that a person will be set free, delivered and made whole. It is by and through the sinless life, virgin birth and suffering death of Christ that God made a way for sinful man to be forgiven and endure. It doesn’t matter how bad the bend is, how crooked the nail or how rusty and corroded it is, God can straighten it and clean it up, if we will let go and believe. Time after time, we try quick fixes and shortcuts to straighten out our life when all we have done is put it on the back burner and covered it up instead of facing it which allows us to bring it out again at another time. When we face our problems, troubles and trials face to face and head on, it is then we will get to the bottom of the matter and solve the problems. Are we ready to face them? Will we step out and face them? Will we talk to the Lord? There is nothing wrong with having a bend in our life, if we will work it out with the Lord and go on. There are Christians, today, with bends in their lives that have been there for years. They haven’t done anything about them. Yet, they have come, through the years, to accept them and they are now a part of their life.
Can a person stand before Christ at the judgment with a bend in their life that is not pleasing unto God? Can a person love one and hate the other? Can one be found in bondage of lust, drugs, alcohol, cheating and lying? Would a person be found with prejudice, cursing, adultery and coveting as a bend in their life and be found just at the judgment? A nail can’t be straightened without the hammer. Neither can a person straighten themself without God and Christ His son. It is, a lot of the time, when we are thrown to the side when we see things as they really are. Only then do we call upon the Lord for help.
When we stand in front of the mirror of God’s word and see our self as we really are, it is then that we begin to see things in a different light. The truth makes a big difference in how we look at things. If we look at things through eyes of worry and depression, we will see no hope. If we look through eyes of fear, we will only see danger. If we look through the spiritual eyes of faith, we see no harm or worry for God is Almighty. Sometimes we look at things and make them worse than they really are. Sometimes we look at things and take for granted the seriousness of the problem. How we look at things will, a lot of the time, help decide what action we will take. Finding the truth of our self sometimes takes stepping off to the side of it all and taking an honest, good, long look into our own heart to see the hurt and bends that have brought us to where we are. We may be empty inside, alone, hurt and have feelings of uselessness in our life and all that is around us. We may appear, on the outside, as a jolly, happy go lucky person without a care in the world. But, the truth is [inside]; we are hopeless, have no joy or laughter and are alone. The Lord doesn’t look at our outer appearance but He ponders our heart. There is not a tear, frown or even a sigh about us that God doesn’t know about. The Lord knows our bends, troubles, sorrows and sighs. He knows the number of teardrops that have fallen from our eyes; He truly cares. Sure, we may not always be on the mountain top or always soaring above the silver clouds. It is when we come down to earth, realize who we are and where we are going that we learn our self and become what the Lord would have us to be which is His child. Only then will we find our place. A lot of the time when we are tossed off to the side, we begin to see things as they really are. There are a lot of things in this world that will dim our light and blow out our candle. The main thing is sin. When we allow sin to enter into our life and stay, our light becomes shaded with darkness. Sin will steal away our spiritual walk with the Lord and separate our fellowship with the Lord. Only through Christ can that fellowship be made whole [through repentance].
I John 1:5-10
This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
Sin has bent many strong men and women. It has driven many in the wrong way. At the same time, it has also broken some, cast them off to the side and left them lost, undone and useless.
I John 2:1
My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
God has made a way for us. However, we have to choose to accept it. God’s way is through the cross and through Christ His son. There have been many good people who slipped and made an honest mistake; they have become liken as a bent nail. They have given in and given up. They have let the devil tell them they aren’t good for anything. The devil is a liar and the father of it.
II Peter 3:9
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
It is not God’s will that any of us should perish but that all would come to repentance. [For, God has never lied.] The question is, will we come back to the Lord and straighten out the bend in our life that stands between us, God and eternal life? Or, will we choose to live with the lies of the devil? It is our choice. It is then, with the Lord through His son, His word, and His spirit, that God takes His hammer [with His love, grace and mercy] and straightens us out so we can be used again to help fulfill the Lord’s plan in our life. The fruits of the spirit are the tools of the master potter that He uses on us to mold and shape us as He sees fit.
Galatians 5:22-23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
If we will let go and let God use those tools on us and in our life, we can straighten out any bent nail we may encounter which will allow us to drive it right on in. However, we have to be willing; we have to want the change. We have to let it all go and give our all. We have to become the clay in the potter’s hands.
Jeremiah 18:1-6
The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words. Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the LORD. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel.
How much are we willing to give? How much will we let go? We all are liken unto nails in God’s plan. But, will we accept it? Our life can be all that it can be. It can be full and wonderful or it can be about as useless as a bent nail – hopeless, lost and full of trouble. It is up to us. We must choose whom we will serve. That will tell us how our tomorrow will be. There are all kinds, shapes and sizes in God’s plan and they’re all used for different purposes. We have to search and find our place to be a part of God’s kingdom. We all are vital in the building of God’s Kingdom. It is there for us. All we have to do is do our part by being useful, productive and on fire for the Lord. We need to seek out and work in His plans for us and be the best we can be with His help. Life is
too precious to waste and take for granted. We may not be famous, rich and popular or even a star. However, we are precious to God even as the teardrops fall from our eyes. We have a place with Him and He has a place for us. We have to be steadfast, unmovable, strong and ready when He shall come.
John 14:1-6
Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
If we are liken unto a bent nail, we need to let go and let God straighten things out and go on with our life; be all God would have us to be [free].
John 8:36
If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.
Sometimes our lives are slightly bent. We will be surprised that it will only take little to no straightening to work it out. The devil would like to make us believe it is the end of the world. But, it’s not. It’s the beginning with us. Eyes have not seen or hearts have yet beheld that of God’s blessing to His born again believers in Him. We all will have our days. It is in those special moments within our heart that God himself has touched us which will bring us through until the end. It doesn’t take a whole lot of words or a lengthy prayer but words from the heart. It does, however, take a broken spirit with a willing heart for God to move in our life and mend the bend.
Luke 4:18
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised.
We sometimes give over to fear and our problems. We fail to reach out unto the Lord. We allow life and the devil to bend us more and more. They both bend us all out of shape and create a devastating work to be done in our life.
II Timothy 1:7
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
How many times do we allow ourselves to be controlled by fear, doubt and unbelief? How many times do we allow those things to altar our lives, decisions and the roads we choose to take? It is by faith and faith alone [no bigger than a grain of mustard seed] that makes all the difference. For greater is he that is in me, than he that is in the world.
I John 4:18
There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because feat hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.
Sin sometimes will slip into the clay, mar it and leave it scarred and cracked. But, as the blacksmith heats the iron to bend it, he heats it as well to strengthen it.
I Peter 1:7
That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:
It is then, in those times, in God’s way and time that if we submit ourselves to the loving hammer of God to straighten the bends in our life (such as a broken vessel in the potter’s hand). He turns the wheel of life around and around; with the gentle touch of the tip of His fingers and hands, He slowly molds and shapes us into His heart’s delight.
Too many times we are liken unto the bent nail. We allow life to drive us in its way instead of letting the Lord lead us in His way.
Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Life can be hard. But, we can [through the Lord] bear it. Life can be good if we will choose the right way. Well, if we have tried all the world and the devil have offered us and we still aren’t any better off then why don’t we try Jesus? We should because we have tried everything else. We will probably be pleasantly surprised. We may find the right way. God is still in control. We must accept the good, go on and live with the bad. [Look at the life of Christ.] Bad things happened to Him even though He is the son of God. Are we no better to be bent in life’s way than Christ? There are times when the nail is hit right on the head and it eases on in. Wouldn’t it be nice to live in a world with no problems, sorrows, suffering or pain? Wouldn’t it be nice to live in a world of peace, joy, love and happiness? Wouldn’t it be nice to never shed a tear or cry because of hurt or pain? Well, we can; there is such a place. Jesus has gone to prepare it for us. God has promised us such a place [Heaven]. All we need to do is be ready when Christ returns. Life is a lot like the nail that slips right on in. When we are set in the direction we should go [the way of the cross], we will find rest and peace in our place in life. In life we take our best shot. We take life as it comes and waits for the promise of that heavenly home. We can choose, today, to stay bent, lay around feeling sorry for our self and live in defeat. Or, we can turn to God and let Him straighten things out for us. We can choose to lie around unconcerned without a care and rust away by not helping our self, much less helping others. We have the choice. Every one of us has the same choice. No one can make it for us. We are one on one with the Lord and it’s our move. There is an answer to all our questions and there is a way for us to take [an eternal way]. That way is through Jesus Christ our Lord. Maybe, today, we feel about as useless as a bent nail and our life seems to be going nowhere. I pray that we all will turn to Jesus, His word and His spirit and let Him straighten it all out for us so we can find our place in His plan [His kingdom]. We are very important to God and we should never believe any different.
Revelation 21:1-4
And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.