Author: J Brad Mitchell

To create something beautiful from a clump of nothingness amazes me.  Bringing an image to life, shaping a vision, and carefully reconfiguring is such a gift we don’t often experience.  That is one of the many reasons I love pottery.  Each piece is carefully created in the hands of a visionary.  Whether it turned out exactly as it began is not the point.  Much is learned in the process of becoming.  Every color and design is an experiment.  It is the joy of bringing something to life in the very shape of your fingers.

It doesn’t always go as planned.  Sometimes it doesn’t turn out at all.  It can easily go back to the lump of nothingness from which it began, only to be reshaped one more time.  Sometimes it is a failure.  But the potter continues to spin – maybe not today, but does continue to create.  The adventure of shaping is not lost.

We are being shaped as well.  Today we may feel like a beautiful piece almost ready to be fired – and then it all falls apart – cracked right down the middle.  Or we could feel like a big lump of nothingness when we are really just before becoming a work of art.  We don’t always understand the process.  We aren’t always grateful for the adventure of the spin.  We would prefer an easy process that creates amazing beauty without a lot of effort.  But that just isn’t reality.  And we know it.  We know this isn’t the way it goes.  So why not embrace the joy of being shaped and molded?  Why not find the hope in knowing we have the potential to become so much more?  What if we simply yielded to the process of being formed and re-formed.  It hurts, yes.  It isn’t always beautiful, sure.  It sometimes is heartbreaking, definitely.  But there is so much more.  We are being made into something beautiful.  Our artist created the sun and the moon, trees and birds, flowers and animals – he knows beauty.  And our artist is creating something beautiful in us too.  Spin away, Lord…spin away.

Focus Scripture:

Jeremiah 18:1-6

The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: ² “Come, go down to the potter’s house, and there I will let you hear my words.” ³ So I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was working at his wheel. ⁴ The vessel he was making of clay was spoiled in the potter’s hand, and he reworked it into another vessel, as seemed good to him.

⁵ Then the word of the Lord came to me: ⁶ Can I not do with you, O house of Israel, just as this potter has done? says the Lord. Just like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel.

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

Sometimes subtle, sometimes vivid, often undeniable – messages are always before us.  They are rapid – no real processing is required.  Today it is foggy, which means the sun is out there somewhere but not evident just yet.  A sign tells us that we need to lose this or buy this or stop here.  We are reminded of our insecurities or our best features.  Flowers can smile at us when people don’t.  Clouds can fascinate us when we have lost our own sense of adventure.  Trees tell us a story of endurance and strength.  My dog Leo reminds me I am loved even when I don’t feel (or act) so lovable.  God tells me I am his beloved even when I feel so unworthy.  Messages are all around us.

What messages are you sending?  What messages are you receiving?  What are you living?  Yes, our messages change moment by moment and day by day.  Some days, I am sure my message is exhaustion.  Some days, elation.  What we believe about the world, about ourselves, about life and about God come through in our messages.  There is a show that Wendy and I enjoy watching.  It is a renovation show and the main person always wears a shirt that has some message about kindness.  This person is kind, at least on the show.  But for her, it is important to spread that message of kindness a little further – and I love it.  I’ve noticed our social media accounts send a message about us too.  Some speak anger and judgement.  You can feel it seething from each post.  Some accounts speak messages of hope – and are a nice reprieve from all the anger.  We may send kindness or love or positive thoughts.  What messages are we living and sending?

Today, may we send and receive messages of love, of kindness, of hope, of peace, of forgiveness, of joy.  What a gift it might be to simply live these messages.  What will you send today?

Focus Scripture:

Ephesians 5:1-2

¹ Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, ² and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

Why is it so hard to listen?  Yes, it takes focus.  Sure, it takes some effort.  But isn’t the other person worth hearing?  Even if we are not interested in what is being said, it is important to the other.  Listening is a gift we give each time we put down our phones, look up from our computers, turn off our TVs and simply listen.  It is a gift we often don’t understand until we crave for someone to hear us.

Listening is especially difficult when what is being said is challenging.  If we are being pushed on something we believe, listening can cause us to want to react.  So often, we are trying to figure out what we will say back to the person, we haven’t actually heard what has been said.  We just want to reply.  You can see it people.  They look as though they will explode if they don’t get to say something.  Their blood pressure may rise so high it appears their heads will pop slam off.  This is not listening.  This is waiting for a moment to respond – to talk (or yell or insult or whatever).

Listening requires each of us to truly hear, even if we may find offense to it.  One of the greatest privileges we are given is to hear someone else’s story.  When someone has offered us the opportunity to hear, we should stop everything we are doing and listen.  When a story is shared with us, we begin to see things in a different light (if we listen).  We begin to see a different opinion and a different outlook.  It may not be our outlook.  It may not be anything we have experienced.  That is the joy of listening.  It can help us to understand in some small way where someone else is coming from.

Listening is hard work.  It can push us beyond our comfort.  It can makes us feel anxious or guilty.  But it is worth it.  We can grow when we listen.  We can be transformed.  And we might find God in the story.  Will you listen to the stories today?

Focus Scripture:

James 1:19-20

¹⁹ You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger; ²⁰ for your anger does not produce God’s righteousness.

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

The flowers seem to have exploded with color and blooms over the last few days.  Vegetables have grown substantially in such a relatively short period of time.  It seems as if someone has covered our area with sprinkles of just the right nutrients to create beauty and food.  It still takes me by surprise.

This morning, I sit on my patio and the flowers have never looked so vibrant.  They are shining bright and bringing such joy as never before.  The eggplant that were so small are now ready to pick.  The cucumbers that looked as though they would be ready in a week are more than ready now.  It is the morning following several days of healing, soaking rain.

Several days of rain can be difficult on us because it limits what we can do outside.  It can seem gloomy to us.  When it rains consecutive days, we want a reprieve.  This morning, though, I notice that this rain was necessary.  I water these flowers daily.  The garden is watered regularly.  They are given extra nutrients.  But there is something about the rain.  I know there is a scientific reason that rain has so much more to offer to the earth.  I am just amazed that the water we have flowing here is not even close to as powerful as rain.  For me, it is as if God knows exactly what his creation needs.  He understands what is needed for growth and flourishing.  And if he can take care of the garden, why do I struggle to understand he can take care of me?  Why is it hard for me to believe he knows exactly what I need as well?

Today, maybe we take a deep breath and allow God to take care of us.  Maybe we begin to understand in some small way that we are his creation just like the vegetables and flowers.  When we allow God to take care of us, we begin to flourish and shine our brightest.  It may be hard to take in. But maybe it is time to give it a shot.  He just might have exactly what we need today.

Focus Scripture:

Psalm 8

¹ O Lord, our Sovereign,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory above the heavens.
²     Out of the mouths of babes and infants
you have founded a bulwark because of your foes,
to silence the enemy and the avenger.

³ When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars that you have established;
⁴ what are human beings that you are mindful of them,
mortals that you care for them?

⁵ Yet you have made them a little lower than God,
and crowned them with glory and honor.
⁶ You have given them dominion over the works of your hands;
you have put all things under their feet,
⁷ all sheep and oxen,
and also the beasts of the field,
⁸ the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea,
whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

⁹ O Lord, our Sovereign,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

Big days often are the culmination of many little steps.  A multitude of seemingly tiny moments compound to reach this milestone of achievement.  It seems to be the journey of a million miles that came together in the blink of an eye.  When you turn around, it’s here.  The long awaited is actually here.  It doesn’t come without the effort.  How exciting it is when the effort becomes reality!

Today is my youngest daughter’s high school graduation.  I admit it has been a long year already and this is a day I wasn’t sure would even happen due to the virus, at least not physically.  But as I think back, this all began with her first small steps in Kindergarten.  There have been ups and downs, highs and lows, joys and disappointments.  So much has filled the past 13 years.  We have awaited this day but I am overwhelmed it is actually here.  She’ll now start the next chapter and work towards a college graduation.  There will be another journey of a thousand small steps.

Life gives us so many celebrations.  We celebrate graduations and weddings.  We celebrate anniversaries and birthdays.  There is Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.  We celebrate.  And most often, if we take just a moment to consider it, we are blown away by the many steps it took to get to this celebration.  We didn’t get to this point without effort.  There is much joy because of all it took to reach the milestone.

Today, you may find yourself just beginning the next journey and the steps look overwhelming.  You may be wondering how you will ever reach your next destination.  It can seem so very far off.  Or you may be in the middle of the journey wondering if you can do it.  It can feel overwhelming and your body can feel so heavy as you travel.  Just remember every step counts.  Every single step teaches us lessons.  Each step is an accomplishment, helping us to reach the ultimate goal.  This step is important, so keep moving.

Celebrate the journey.  Celebrate the milestones.  Enjoy the steps, they all count.

Focus Scripture:

Psalm 37:23-24

²³ Our steps are made firm by the Lord,
when he delights in our way;
²⁴ though we stumble, we shall not fall headlong,
for the Lord holds us by the hand.

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

Is the door open to just anything?  Do we allow just a free flow?  Is it okay to have doors wide open?  In some cases, this is a yes.  But when we are talking about our minds and bodies, the answer changes.

We know that what we eat has an effect on our entire bodies.  The food we take in can help us or hurt us.  When we fill our bodies with unhealthy, heavy foods, we feel it.  It takes its toll on us.  When we fuel our bodies with good, clean foods, that makes a difference as well.  What we put in really does matter.  It is amazing how our bodies respond to the foods we take in.

Our minds work the same way.  What we allow into our minds changes how we feel.  If I spend all day watching the news, I will feel more tense and angry.  If I focus on social media for several hours, I feel beat and upset.  If I allow negative thoughts about myself to creep in, I begin to believe them.  I am harming myself, one thought at a time.  I begin to hear that things will never get better.  I begin to ingest that I am a failure and I should just quit.  I hear voices of judgment and anger fill my being.  I allow destructive thoughts to take over my day.  And before I know it, I am defeated…one thought at a time.

What we allow in really makes all the difference.  What if we filter what we allow through the lens of our Creator?  How might things change if we see who God says we are?  How might God’s love change how we view the world and ourselves?  What if I eat so that I fuel my body with the things of this earth that God has given to heal me?  If I hear who God says I am, might that slow some of the harmful words spoken?  Maybe I spend more time reading God’s truth than the hype of the day.  Or maybe I spend some time in God’s good creation being reminded that this is not the end, it is just the beginning.

Today is the day to begin to filter what we allow into our minds and bodies.  God created us for so much more.  Let’s live the abundant life.

Focus Scripture:

Matthew 6:22-23

²² “The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light; ²³ but if your eye is unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

Lost in the madness is the voice.  I get off track and just need to hear.  I lose my place and forget the comfort.  I go forward into the unknown and wish it was bouncing off of the trees.  I crave to hear it.  I pause to take it in.  Surely it is there and I am just focused on something else.  I hear it ever so faintly when my heart is broken and my spirit feels so weak.  I know I am not alone, but I just want to hear, to hear the voice.

We grow up recognizing voices.  Babies distinguish the voice of their caretakers.  Children can detect a voice of a family member from across a store.  A voice can bring comfort when we are scared or lost.  A voice can be reassuring when we don’t know what to do next.  When we lose loved ones, we have a deep desire to hear their voices one more time.  There is just something about hearing them speak.  We can hear kindness and love in others.  We can feel compassion in words spoken.  Words of redirection and discipline are easily detected in voices.  Even disappointment can be identified when others speak.  It is amazing the emotions that are evoked at the sound of a voice.

There is one voice that speaks peace and love.  There is a voice that is a guide and reprieve.  There is a voice that helps us to understand that no matter where we may be, we are never alone.  This is the voice of God.  Unlike the voices of our loved ones, this voice is most inaudible by our ears.  This voice is heard through our heart.  This voice lights up our entire selves and resounds in the walls of our lives.  Because it is not audible like others, it is easy to miss.  It takes effort to really hear.  But if we are honest, it takes effort to really listen to any voice.  If we will listen, though, we will be changed.

Do you hear it?  Do you hear him speaking to you?  Do you feel his presence in the middle of your grief?  Do you know the warm comfort of his words?  Are you wrapped in the voice of love?  If not, I invite you to hear.  He is speaking to us.  And it is good.

Focus Scripture:

John 10:1-5

 “Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. ² The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. ³ The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. ⁴ When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. ⁵ They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.”

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

It all falls apart.  It seems to be the end.  We didn’t want it to be like this.  This isn’t what we prayed for nor what we wanted it to look like.  We wanted a different conclusion to the story.  We wanted, we longed for, we prayed for something else.  And it didn’t happen.  It just didn’t happen.  We grieve.  We grieve what we have lost.  We grieve the life that will never be.  We grieve the experiences we didn’t create.  We grieve what could have been but didn’t.  It just seems to be the end.

What if it is a new beginning rather than the end?  I’m not suggesting we forget what we lost.  I’m not, for a moment, recommending we put the past aside.  That is important.  Those are lessons and relationships and treasures.  It may not be the ending we would have chosen.  But we move into the new beginning with the memories.  We move into the new beginning with the lessons.  We take the treasures with us as we move forward.  What if our world is not ending but simply a new beginning.

I often hear people say they would go back in time if they could go back with the knowledge they have now. What if we are given a chance to move forward into a new beginning with the knowledge we have now.  What if we are actually given new beginnings that help us to create new memories and have new experiences, with our past as guides.  Maybe this is the opportunity we have been waiting for, to start again, to go forward with the experiences we have been given.  This may be a whole new beginning.

What will you do with the knowledge you have gained?  How do you move forward with the experiences that have helped shape you?  What could you do differently as you seek all this new beginning offers?  It is incredible to think of all this life still has to offer when we simply want to give up.  There are so many new adventures yet to be explored.  There are new lessons to learn.  There are new friendships and experiences we cannot even begin to imagine.  And we get the opportunity to take those, with the wealth of knowledge we have gained through the years.  This may not be the end at all…it may just be the beginning we have always dreamed.  How will you move forward into the future, beginning today?  I can’t wait to see what is ahead!

Focus Scripture:

2 Corinthians 5:17

So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

Today, the birds seem to sing at the top of their tiny voices.  There is harmony in the multitude of different songs, as if creating a symphony.  They could be singing for their mate.  Or they could simply sing because that is what they do.  It is a partially cloudy day with just enough breeze to keep the gnats from swarming.  It is so quiet yet the birds sing.  They each have such a unique offering.  One alone would be interesting but together, they have a magnificent proclamation.  I am reminded of the song, “His Eye is on the Sparrow.”  The chorus exclaims there is singing because of happiness, there is singing because of freedom.  That song takes on even a deeper meaning as I am a welcome audience in the joyful freedom hymn.

I understand they do not sing for me.  I realize that they would sing even if I was not sitting outside.  They sing because that is what they do.  They do not need me.  They just sing.  And it is freeing to me.  I am thankful to be in the audience of the concert.

I find we can get easily get caught up with who is listening.  We don’t sing because it isn’t perfect.  We don’t write because someone might be offended.  We don’t draw because we aren’t the best artist in the world.  We are more worried about our audience than about the gift.  Life could be so freeing if we stopped worrying about the audience and simply created.  Whether it is a song or a drawing or dancing, we might find joy in the moment.  We may find we sing because we are happy and we do not care what it sounds like.  We may draw because we are free.  When we stop worrying about being perfect, the song becomes more about the One that gave us the song than the audience.  Today, may a symphony of voices lift to the heavens.

Focus Scripture:

Psalm 84:2-4

² My soul longs, indeed it faints
for the courts of the Lord;
my heart and my flesh sing for joy
to the living God.

³ Even the sparrow finds a home,
and the swallow a nest for herself,
where she may lay her young,
at your altars, O Lord of hosts,
my King and my God.
⁴ Happy are those who live in your house,
ever singing your praise. Selah

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery