Day 10 The Potter's Ashes

DAY 10 — THE POTTER’S ASHES “God Uses What Has Burned to Strengthen What Will Be” In a small pottery workshop, a craftsman kept a simple clay jar on a shelf. It wasn’t filled with tools or paint— but with ashes. One afternoon, a visitor asked, “Why do you keep ashes next to your wheel?” The potter smiled and said, “These are from pots that cracked in the fire. Every time one breaks, I grind it down and save the ashes.” Then he sprinkled a handful into fresh clay and continued, “When I mix ashes into new clay, the next pot becomes stronger, less likely to crack. The fire that destroyed the old one strengthens the new one.” The visitor stared in awe. Nothing was wasted. Not even what had burned. Lent begins with ashes— and the potter shows us why. Your failures, your sins, your painful memories, your moments of collapse, your past that embarrasses you— God does not throw any of it away. He redeems it. Transforms it. Mixes it into the new creation He is shaping in you. The fire that broke you will become the fire that strengthens you. The ashes of your past are not reminders of shame but ingredients of transformation. Lent is the season where God, the Divine Potter, kneads your sorrow into your future strength. You are not being discarded. You are being remade.