potter and clay

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Thu Jun 04, 2009 7:44 pm

another good OCP.org song for children is
"Children run joyfully" http://www.ocp.org/songs/1412
we use it at St Francis of Assisi Mojave, CA, Childrens Christmas Mass

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Tue Apr 20, 2010 9:34 pm

The song that we sing at church is by Carey Landry.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sun Aug 01, 2010 2:40 pm

I am Protestant but first heard this wonderful song at a meeting of Spirit Filled Catholics at Varsity Stadium, way back when. It was a lifechanging celebration
Beryl Jeffs, Aurora Ontario

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sat Aug 14, 2010 10:24 pm

Potter and the clay

Potter hear the clay, saying mold me in Thy way
that I may share this love instilled in me.
With skillful hands perfom the task, just like Thee.
Lord all I ask, and Father let your spirit breathe on me.

Chorus
I'm just a handful of clay, the potter found along the way
And I'll never know just what He seen in me.

There is more to this but I can't get the word right. If anyone has the correct words and knows who recorded it, please let me know.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Feb 09, 2011 12:43 pm

This song is sung in Prisons across this land as it's a favorite of "Kairos International Prision Ministry" and first touched my heart on my "Walk to Emmaus"

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Fri Feb 25, 2011 12:47 am

My father and I use to sing this every Father's day at church in the folk group. It makes me remember him, I miss him so much.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Tue Nov 29, 2011 12:43 am

the lyrics are good but the first couple words are abba abba father not abba father so ill give you 7/10

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sun Jun 24, 2012 3:36 pm

Have Thine Own Way Lord, talks about Thou art the Potter I am the clay. This maybe the song your thinking of.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Fri Nov 16, 2012 11:40 pm

I love ABBA (the swedish band) and i love Harry Potter (the brilliant tale of a young wizard) so when i typed in "ABBA father" (i typed in ABBA f and that came up so clicked it, i meant to put ABBA fernando because i need the lyrics) and the lyrics "ABBA father you are the potter" came up i thought someone has read my mind, it turns out it's a hymn. But what i would like to know is what the ABBA part means and when this song was witten and by who?

steve · Post by **steve** » Sun Nov 18, 2012 7:44 am

Hi Guest,

I enjoy a few ABBA songs as well as the Harry Potter stories myself

But to answer your question, the word "Abba" predates the Swedish band by a few thousand years

It's actually an Aramaic word that's an endearing form for "father", much like the word "daddy" or "papa" is in English. It's mentioned a few times in the Bible.

The first time is in the garden of Gethsemane when Jesus is pleading with God to spare him from the agony of crucifixion, he starts his prayer with "Abba, Father" (that's in Mark 14:36).

In Romans 8:15 and Galatians 4:6, the apostle Paul talks about how when we receive and live by the Holy Spirit, we are set free from being controlled by our sins, and become the children of God who no longer need to fear condemnation. At that point we have a new intimacy with God where we can pray to Him and call out "Abba, Father", as a child calls out to his or her dad. The chapter in Romans is definitely one of the most powerful ones in the Bible.

As others in the thread have mentioned, the particular song here was written by Carey Landry, and is a contemporary retelling of the prophet Isaiah's words of Isaiah 64:8 (echoed by the Apostle Paul in Romans 9:21), comparing us to clay and God to the potter (i.e., someone who makes pots out of clay). It's a way of explaining that we are all put here on earth for a specific purpose.

Incidentally, J.K. Rowling derived Harry Potter's last name from the phrase "potter's field" which is also in the Bible. Judas Iscariot (the disciple who betrayed Jesus) was buried in a potter's field (a piece of land that couldn't grow agriculture and thus was relegated to making clay for pots). Over the years the phrase "potter's field" has become synonymous with a cemetery where a city would bury people with no families. J.K. Rowling was pretty clever in that she chose a name that was associated with a curse (Judas) as well as being an orphan (potter's field).

Hope this helps, and hope you enjoyed the impromptu Bible class

God bless,
Steve