“It’s one thing to think about God being the potter and that He chooses to make me into a flower pot or candle holder or vase,” my friend said. “It is another thing to think about the process of preparing the clay to be made into a beautiful finished product.”

Pastor and author Chuck Swindoll captures this irony in The Mystery of God’s Will. He writes, “It has been my observation over the years that the deeper the hurt, the greater the usefulness.” Let that sink into your mind and heart.