So I went to the potter’s house, and sure enough, the potter was there, working at his wheel. Whenever the pot he was shaping turned out badly—as sometimes happens when working with clay—the potter simply started over, using the same clay to make another pot. (Jeremiah 18:4, MSG)
Have you noticed how much “shaking” is happening in our world? Everywhere we turn, people seem to be hurting, struggling, and experiencing chaos—perhaps more intensely than we’ve seen in a long time. Earlier this week, I sat with people grieving the deep loss of relationships. What once felt like strong bonds, built over decades of shared life, had been broken. I won’t list all the situations I’m aware of, but I can say this kind of shaking is painful to witness and to experience.
This sense of upheaval is affecting churches as well. I believe the Lord is preparing his Church for something new. For some, this is a deeply painful season of refining; for others, it is a time of growing expectancy and renewed hope. Either way, God is forming new wineskins because he has new spiritual wine to pour out.
You and I are part of that process. Just as a snake sheds its skin or a mollusk outgrows its shell, we sometimes must leave behind what is familiar in order to step into what is new. That process can feel exposing and unsettling, but we are always held in the palms of God’s hands. We are never alone. He gently removes the old—sometimes layer by layer—so that the new can emerge. And he invites us to move forward into it, because he has good plans and purpose for our future.
Sometimes God allows something to be broken in order to build something new, much like the potter in Jeremiah 18. Jesus said, “No one puts new wine into old wineskins… But new wine must be put into new wineskins” (Mark 2:22). When something can no longer serve its purpose, it is replaced. When a container cannot hold the new wine, a new one is needed. In the same way, when a church is no longer aligned with what God’s Spirit is doing, he may raise up a new expression of the Body of Christ—one that can carry the movement of the Holy Spirit.
Right now, it may feel like everything that can be shaken is being shaken. Even the spiritually strongest among us can feel unsteady. But we have received a kingdom that cannot be shaken. If God is moving his Church from one season into another, there will be things we must release. And if he is moving you into a new season, letting go may be very painful. Give yourself permission to grieve.
But God does not intend for you to remain in mourning. Ask him for healing—for the oil and wine, the Balm of Gilead. Ask him to show you the new thing he is doing in the world and in your life. Ask him to use this season of pressing and refining to shape you into what he needs for what lies ahead.
You are strong. You are courageous. You can do hard things. You are a warrior.
Let us give thanks with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.
All-Consuming Fire,
You are our heart’s desire and we want to be people of deep faith. Help us to stand firmly on your promises and to trust you when it feels like life is shaking and breaking beyond what we can bear. Help us to lean into your grace, mercy, and hope. Heal us, strengthen us, and recreate us as new wineskins so your New Wine for this world can be poured out through us, your children. We ask this in Jesus’s name, AMEN.
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. (Jeremiah 29:11 NIV)
Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us give thanks, by which we offer to God an acceptable worship with reverence and awe. (Hebrews 12:8 NRSVCE)