Is being made new a possibility? Small Jar, a tiny cracked and useless vessel, would hope so. And, I’m sure so would we. It is easy to focus on our past mistakes, the wounds and scars that happened to us, and even the ones we caused. We wish we could forget them altogether. But what if we weren’t meant to erase the adverse events from our past? What if those circumstances pave the way for a bright future and a new you? This article shows us how to embrace the negativism of the past and turn it into a positive future.

Little Pot, Tea Pot, Oil Lamp, and Small Jar are journeying through a “Beautiful year in the Bible.” This week’s scripture explores the idea of being made new, and Small Jar is an expert on this topic.

In the story, The Small Jar, the Potter finds a new use for a small cracked jar. The other vessels ask the Potter to repair the crack. Their idea of “making it like new” is to fill the crack so the jar can be used again. Or, at least, “used” as they think it should be. However, the Potter has a use for cracks, not just jars. In the story, the crack allows oil to seep into an oil lamp and refuel it so it will not burn out. You see, our “cracks” can also help others be refueled with oil (a symbol of the Holy Spirit). God indeed wants us to be made new. However, it may surprise us how He does it. Let’s look at this week’s scriptures.

Scriptures for Being Made New

• Romans 5-6
• Genesis 8-11
• Joshua 11-15
• Psalms 6-8
• Job 5-6
• Isaiah 12-17
• Matthew 5-7

Saul became Paul

This week, A Beautiful Year in the Bible begins with Romans 5-6, where Paul encourages believers to embrace a new identity. Paul had quite a negative past. Paul (previously Saul) was the opposite of a man God would use. Or was he? True, he hunted and killed Christians. How much more negative can a past be? However, when we look into Saul’s heart, we see a passion to defend the faith he believed in. That was something God wanted to work with. Saul was being made new. As Paul, his past was not erased. In fact, Paul talked about his past when he wanted to share the gospel of Jesus with others.

Attitudes for a New Beginning

In the other scriptures, we read about Noah and the new world he experienced under the arc of a rainbow. Noah’s past experiences allowed him to embrace this new world with greater appreciation. Likewise, Joshua and the Israelites are given a new, promised land to inhabit. After spending forty years in the desert, they were ready to conquer and enjoy a land of milk and honey. Then, the verses in Matthew tell us how negative circumstances mean we are blessed with a positive future. These are known to us as the Beatitudes. Little Pot shares lessons and a song to explain the Beatitude (or Bee Attitudes) here.

Being Made New as a Fruit Pot.

The fruit of the Spirit grows through adverse circumstances. For example, why would someone need to produce patience or longsuffering if suffering did not exist in the first place? The peace that grows through the Holy Spirit is a peace that exists through turmoil. If we want to be “made new” through the power of the Holy Spirit, we are ready to become fruit-bearing vessels. Or, as Little Pot calls it, “A fruit pot!”

To help, Little Pot, Tea Pot, Oil Lamp, and Small Jar are journeying through a “Beautiful year in the Bible.”

We would love you to join the adventure! The Potter wants to make you into a new vessel created to bear fruit. The fruit your creator can grow through you is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Enter your first name and email below to download Little Pots’s seven steps to becoming a fruit pot! Additionally, you’ll receive a Fruitful Friday email each week where you can continue to “Learn a lot from a little pot!”