Behold, Play-Doh

“Behold, Play-Doh. Behold, Childhood,” wrote The Washington Post journalist Rachel Siegel in her 2018 article highlighting this seventy-year-old toy. [1]  Since 1955, the iconic dough (originally marketed as a wallpaper cleaner) has delighted its fans with countless hours of distinctly scented, sensorially satisfying fun.  With over two billion cans of Play-Doh having been sold worldwide since its creation, it would be hard to find someone who hadn’t experienced the joy of softly popping off the top of the memorable yellow can housing that soft, vibrant chunk just waiting to be squished. [2] 

Parenting has a profound way of opening the field of analogies as we strive to bring to scriptural principles to life for our children.  As a result, ordinary things suddenly take on almost divine significance as we use them as a springboard for discipleship…even something as ordinary as that little yellow tub of sniffable, moldable dough!  The shaping, smelling, smashing, or sculpting of Play-Doh is indelible and can help bring to life Biblical truths for children and adults alike.  This staple of classroom shelves and toy bins (and occasionally hair and carpet!) worldwide can teach us through three of its most notable characteristics:  Smell, composition, and purpose.

Rachel Siegel’s May 2018 article in The Post was written to highlight the news that Hasbro’s famous product had joined the ranks of a mere handful of scents to be registered by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.  Its an unmistakable aroma that the toy manufacturer describes as “[a] unique . . . combination of a sweet, slightly musky, vanilla-like fragrance, with slight overtones of cherry, and the natural smell of a salted, wheat-based dough.”  Odds are, you can probably imagine that very smell right now!  Some aromas are just that way – able to transport, comfort, soothe, and please. 

Isaac demonstrated the power of our olfactory sense in Genesis 27:27 (NIV), when Jacob used a simple smell to deceitfully identify himself as his brother to gain a blessing.  We’re told that “[w]hen Isaac caught the smell of [Jacob’s] clothes, he blessed him and said, ‘Ah, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the Lord has blessed.’”  That outdoorsy fragrance was powerful and very special to Isaac because of its connection with Esau and, when he caught a whiff of that smell (albeit on Jacob), he immediately offered his blessing.  The word “smell” in Genesis 27:27, which literally means “a tranquillizing odor (of ascending sacrifices)”,  is used around two dozen times in the Old Testament for the phrase “pleasing aroma” in the context of sacrifice.[3]  It was unmistakable to God Almighty, always evoking His pleasure, ebbing His wrath, or effecting His blessings.  In the same way, 2 Corinthians 2:15 tells us that we ourselves become that kind of powerful, distinct scent before our Lord.  “For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.”  While we may not physically smell of musky, sweet, cherry-tinged wheat dough, our lives should be just such a pleasing aroma – distinctive enough to be trademarked – among the world and, especially before our Savior.

Many kiddos have probably wreaked havoc trying to recreate the propriety Play-Doh formula in their mother’s kitchen through the years.  Though the precise combinations and amounts needed to create the unique dough are known only to Hasbro, the primary ingredients are well-known:  Flour, salt, and water.  The fundamental pantry staples of salt and flour combine to produce a simple mixture that is physically combined, but not a new substance.  They continue to be salt and flour.  But when water is added, something fascinating happens…a chemical change occurs and the old flour and salt mixture becomes something completely new![4]  Regardless of any amount of mixing or any length of time, the salt and flour will never be transformed into something new without the water.   

Similarly, no matter what we try to do on our own to make ourselves better or change internally, we remain fundamentally the same and in our old sinful state unless and until we are transformed through the waters of baptism.  Paul put it this way in Titus 3:4-5 (NLT):  “When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life. . .”  And in Romans 6:3 (NIV), Paul makes it clear that the power behind our transformation doesn’t come from the water, but rather the water is the conduit through which we contact the truly transformative shed blood of Christ.  “Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?”  Just like that old flour and salt mix, we become something completely new through the transformative blood of Jesus in our water baptism.   

Oh, but we can’t forget the other special ingredient that really sets the famous squeezable stuff apart (or at least its copycat kitchen versions)…cream of tartar!  Although the Hasbro counterpart ingredient is an undisclosed additive, it’s still true that without the critical addition of cream of tartar or the like, the mixture (homemade or storebought) wouldn’t be nearly as soft and pliable and would harden and spoil quickly.  Who would want to play with a wad of Play-Doh that was sticky or slimy, or on the other hand, crumbly or crusty?  In fact, that new mixture would just be a waste.[5]

The last phrase of Titus 3:5, coupled verse 6 lets us in on the not-so-secret ingredient of a new creation in Christ, “giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.  He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior.”  (NLT; emphasis added.)  The Holy Spirit keeps us pliable, soft, and moldable before the Lord, while also helping preserve us and keep us unspoiled.  He helps us know God’s truths (Ephesians 3:16-19); He guides us into truth (John 16:13-15); He produces good fruits (Galatians 5:22); He fills us with hope (Romans 15:13); He fills our hearts with God’s love (Romans 5:5); He intercedes for us and helps us in our weakness (Romans 8:26-27); He teaches us (John 14:26); and He seals us, guaranteeing our inheritance in Christ (Ephesians 1:13-14).  What an ingredient the Holy Spirit is!  And what a slimy or hard or crumbly waste the new creation of our lives would be without His addition to and indwelling in our lives!

In a press release describing a teaching curriculum centered around Play-Doh, Hasbro stated that it’s purpose was “to empower future generations with the confidence to explore and express their imaginations.”[6]  A quick internet query will return scads of articles highlighting all the benefits to children when they play with the colorful scented dough.  It’s easy to see that the core purpose of this historic product is, quite simply…kids!  It was made for them.  For their benefit.  For their enjoyment.  Kids are the reason Play-Doh exists. 

Wouldn’t it be a ridiculous idea to think that there was first a lump of clay and that a child was created simply for the purpose and benefit of that lifeless lump?  Yet, we often forget that the reason we exist, the very reason we were lovingly crafted from a lump of clay was, quite simply…God!  We were made for Him.  “Everything was created through him and for him.” (Colossians 1:16b)  We were made for His glory.  “But now, this is what the Lord says - he who created you. . . Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth - everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”  (Isaiah 43:1, 6-7)  We were made to bring Him honor and glory.  “[F]or it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:13)  “So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31)  Just as Play-Doh exists for kids, rather than kids existing for Play-Doh, God is the reason we exist!

Without a doubt, parenting can be a peculiar, but profound schoolmaster, offering a glimpse of complex truths in simple things…like a bright, squishy fistful of sweet-smelling clay.  Or maybe, through the Holy Spirit, God is still very much in the business of displaying His nature, our nature, and His divine plan and calling for any of us who desire to “set our minds on things above.” (Colossians 3:2)  With apologies to Ms. Siegel, perhaps those with spiritual eyes and ears might more aptly rephrase her line to read:  Behold, Play-Doh.  Behold, God.