Cracked Water Pot

As the story goes, a water bearer in India had two large pots, each
hanging on the end of a pole which he carried across his neck. One of the
pots had a crack in it and only delivered a half a pot of water, while the
other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the
end of the long walk from the stream to the master’s house.

For a full two years this went on daily, with the water bearer delivering
only one and a half pots of water to his master. Of course, the perfect
pot was proud of its accomplishments, being perfect to the end for which
it was made. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed and continually
miserable over its imperfection which caused it to accomplish only half of
what it had been designed to do.

After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, the cracked
water pot spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream. “I am ashamed
of myself,” he told him, “and I want to apologize to you.” “Why?” asked
the bearer. “What are you ashamed of?” “For these past two years I have
been able to deliver only half my load because of the crack in my side
which causes water to leak out all the way back to your master’s house.
Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this work, but you don't get
full value from your efforts,” the pot said.

The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion
he said, “As we return to the master’s house, I want you to notice the
beautiful flowers along the path.” Indeed, as they went up the hill, the
old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers
on the side of the path, and this cheered it some. But at the end of the
trail, it still felt bad because, as usual, it had leaked out half of its
water, and so again it apologized to the water bearer for its consistent
failure.

The bearer said to the pot, “Did you notice that there were flowers only
on your side of the path, but not on the other pot’s side? That is because
I have always known about your flaw, and took advantage of it by planting
flower seeds on your side of the path. And every day for these past two
years when we would walk back from the stream, you watered them. As a
result of your flaw, you have been able to supply these beautiful flowers
for me to pick and decorate my master’s table. Without you being just the
way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house.”

Each of us has our own unique flaws. We all have some sort of imperfection
whether they are obvious or not. But if we will allow it, the Lord will
use our flaws to grace His Father’s table. In God’s great economy, nothing
goes to waste.

So as we seek ways to minister together, and as God calls us to the tasks
He has appointed for us to do, let us not be inhibited by our flaws, but
rather acknowledge them, and then allow the Lord to use them for His honor
and glory.

And in doing so, we too can bring beauty to His pathway. May we all
therefore go out boldly, knowing that in our weakness we find God’s
strength, realizing that His “grace is sufficient” for us, and His
“strength is made perfect in [our] weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:7-10).