![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2004\/03\/moldingClay.jpg\")
A little child has often been likened to a piece of clay that can be molded into whatever type of pottery that the potter (parent) has in mind. A little child is so pliable, so willing to be molded and so trusting. This can either be a fantastic opportunity or a tragic consequence depending on what the potter does. Solomon expresses this truth vividly when he says, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it<\/em>” (Proverbs 22:6). This is why Paul urged parents to “bring up your children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord<\/em>” (Ephesians 6:4).<\/p>\nWhen clay hardens, it is too late to mold it as you desire. So it is with children. In their young and tender years, they can be taught and guided into the way of the Lord, but as they grow older, they become set and fixed in the mold that was cast. You can’t wait until a child is a teenager to mold him It begins before he is born. It takes place while he is a baby, while he is a toddler, and while he is a pre-schooler. Do you realize that most of a child’s molding has already taken place by the time he starts school? Potters (parents), how are you molding your child?<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Forrest D. Moyer A little child has often been likened to a piece of clay that can be molded into whatever type of pottery that the potter (parent) has in mind. A little child is so pliable, so willing to be molded and so trusting. This can either be a fantastic opportunity or a…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27,1028],"tags":[665,29,107],"class_list":["post-59959","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","category-parenting","tag-child-rearing","tag-parenting","tag-raising-children"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":13380,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-does-name-it-and-claim-it-mean\/","url_meta":{"origin":59959,"position":0},"title":"What does ‘Name it and Claim it” mean?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 15, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: What does 'Name it and Claim it\" mean? Answer: \"Name it and claim it\" is the slogan of the Positive Confession movement, also known as Word-Faith. At the heart of the movement's teaching is the idea that faith is what we say, not what we have in someone else.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":84079,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/does-god-make-use-of-sinners\/","url_meta":{"origin":59959,"position":1},"title":"Does God make use of sinners?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 6, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Good day sir, In the context of the potter and the clay, is it simply explained that God uses sinners in their sinful condition doing wrong or sinning to accomplish His purpose? Answer: The illustration of the potter and the clay is used several times in the Scriptures. \"Woe\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":88343,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/in-the-hands-of-the-potter\/","url_meta":{"origin":59959,"position":2},"title":"In the Hands of the Potter","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 2, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Cleve Stafford \"Behold, like the clay in the potter's hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel\" (Jeremiah 18:6). If you have ever watched an artisan potter at work, I think you will agree that it is mesmerizing. Those hands are so powerful, and yet they\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/potter2-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":55257,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/five-smooth-stones-of-parenting\/","url_meta":{"origin":59959,"position":3},"title":"Five Smooth Stones of Parenting","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 21, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"by Sewell Hall In Goliath, David faced what seemed an indomitable foe. David's goal was not so much to kill the giant as to protect the children and honor God. He took five smooth stones from the brook to achieve his purpose. In the pervasive humanism of our society, parents\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/five-smooth-stones-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":55152,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/because-it-is-right\/","url_meta":{"origin":59959,"position":4},"title":"Because It Is Right","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 11, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jim R. Everett Reward incentive motivation permeates our society. People respond to rewards just like little puppies do. Some parents think only in terms of rewarding their children, and, they even reward them for being bad. When a parent says to a little child, \"If you will quit throwing\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/tantrum2.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":14336,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/who-is-god-to-decide-my-life\/","url_meta":{"origin":59959,"position":5},"title":"Who is God to decide my life?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 15, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: So who is God to decide and what mechanism do I have to protest that He is wrong? Being male is not enough to suggest He is all-knowing. Why put me on this earth with an overwhelming sense that I don't belong here. 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