I started a beginning quilting class on Saturday. My Mamma made many, many quilts, and I can never remember a time when she wasn't working on one. Most were pieced and quilted by hand. I used to love looking at the finished product and seeing pieces of different articles of clothing worn by myself or some member of the family. Always a fun thing. And yes, I still have many of her quilts. They hold a very special place in my heart.
Since I need another project to add to the long list of ongoing projects (sarcasm font) I decided it was time to get busy. I went from being the only girl who never took home-ec in school to being the mom who made everything our family wore. The only thing I didn't master was making Mike's dress pants. Then, like other moms I had to start working full time, and the sewing machine went into the closet for 20 years. It's been out the last year making blankets for little guys. O Happy Day!
Oh, and I also taught sewing classes. So, imagine my surprise when I go to the first class and learn all kinds of new things! I am so excited. And of course, technology and new methods and products continue to evolve, meaning I am way behind. Some of my notions will need to be replaced, because it's important to use the right tools. Michael will be so impressed. Not.
After some basic lingo instruction we discussed the correct way to cut the fabric using a rotary cutter and mat. I can't tell you how many inches of ribbing for t-shirts I've used that process on. Millions, okay, maybe just thousands, but a lot. Our instructor stressed the importance of squaring up the fabric in order to make precision cuts, and the need to re-square everything after the third cut. If you get off just a little on one cut by the end of 12 you could be in serious trouble. The seam width is also very important. So important that we were given fabric pieces to practice on in order to get the correct settings on our machines.
There are some great spiritual parallels here. In the quilt of our lives we have 'pieces' from many different places. We can look back and see the influences and impacts made by other people. Some of them were made directly, some were made indirectly - a piece of fabric from someone else's clothing. And those influences, like pieces of a quilt, show up in different patterns, and different paradigms depending on the time and event. We continue to learn and gain new insights. And new pieces are being introduced all the time. And they all come together to make us who we are and who we are becoming. Some of the pieces we really like, they are our favorites. There are others we'd love to forget, if only we could.
Occasionally we need to stop and 'square-up.' We need to do some checking and make sure we're on the right track. Are we using the right tools? Are we using them correctly? It's easy to get off track. We start letting things in a little at a time - an eighth of a inch that ends up being a whole inch. An inch that distorts, warps, and damages the finished product. An inch that makes the quilt difficult to work with, makes it hard to look at, and causes pain to the creator and those around it.
Hebrews says, "the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart." God's word is our 'squarer-up-er'. When we learn and study different pieces of it we are influenced by it, given deeper insights.
We think we know one part well and then a different instructor comes on the scene and refreshes and updates the truth for us. It means different things to us at different times. A verse that once convicted and admonished now speaks comfort and rest. It reminds us of who we were, and who we are becoming in Christ Jesus. It encourages and admonishes to keep us from self-inflicted pain. It reminds us that He is using everything to make us into a new creature, a beautiful creation.
Is He teaching you new things? Is He updating and giving you new insights into what you already know? Is He bringing you the correct tools? Is He telling you to 'square-up?' Are you even paying attention to know what He's doing? He IS the Master Quilter, and He longs to make a beautiful creation, each one unique, each one with its own purpose, each one with its own flaws which He makes right.
O Happy Day!
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