Daily Blessing

Battered Pots

 I Corinthians 15:42-49 NKJV
  
"42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. 43 It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. 44 It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. 45 And so it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual. 47 The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven. 48 As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly. 49 And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man". 

Years ago, I heard a story about a man looking for flowers for spring planting. At the greenhouse he came across a splendid floral arrangement, bursting with blooms. To his surprise, it was hidden in a corner and growing in an old, dented rusty bucket.

"If these were my flower," he said to himself, "I would place each in a beautiful pot and display them proudly! Why are they confined in this old bucket and hidden away in this concealed place?"

When he remarked to the owner about the flowers, she explained, "Oh, I started the plantings in that old bucket until each blossomed. But it's just for a short time. Soon I'll transplant them to my garden."

The man laughed, and imagined such a scene in heaven. "There's a beautiful one," God will say, "the product of My lovingkindness and grace. Now it's confined in a broken body and in obscurity, but soon, in My garden, how tall and lovely this soul will stand!"

So we may now be "planted" in bent and battered containers for a short time while our Lord beautifies our souls. But, "as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man" (1 Cor. 15:49). Then He will display His handiwork and our loveliness for all to see. This is our assurance and delight.

In bodies that will ne'er grow old,
We'll reign with Him through years untold;
O precious thought: We all shall be
With Christ through all eternity.

While God is preparing a place for us, He is preparing us for that place.