The Quilt

I love quilts.
I have a large quilt in my family room, hanging on a quilt rack my husband made for me.
It is a lone star pattern.
The red star in the center catches your eye when you walk into the room.

There is another quilt in my foyer.
It is the Christmas-Easter quilt, since it has a star and cross shape stitched throughout.

I appreciate the beauty of quilts, but I am not a quilter.
I was not gifted with a needle and thread.
The amount of time and precision that goes into the making of a quilt astounds me.

I imagine the pioneer women having a quilting bee.
They would talk to each other and catch up on news.
Yet, they still worked so precisely on the section of quilt that was in front of them.
They had to be careful not to prick their finger with the needle and get blood on the quilt.

I would love to have an old quilt, with the date stitched on it.
I would love to know the history.
I would imagine the places the quilt might have been…the covered wagon it traveled in…the children it kept warm on a cold winter’s night.

If you ever looked at a quilt, before the batting or the backing were added, you would see many knots of thread on the other side.
In fact, looking at this side of the quilt, it would look unfinished and not very attractive.
You would never want to hang that quilt over your fireplace, or place it on a bed.

When you turn the quilt over, however, it is absolutely beautiful.
No knots…just perfect beauty by design.

Our lives are much like a quilt.
God, the Quilt-maker, carefully stitches each one.
Each quilt has its own story…its own history.
Each pattern is the unique design of the Quilt-maker.

Often, when life is hard and situations are difficult, we only see the knots on our quilt.
They seem disjointed and a bit ugly.
Not something you want to show anyone.

But the Quilt-maker sees something vastly different.
The Quilt-maker can indeed see the knots.
The knots are there by His design, and they serve a purpose.

The knots hold the quilt together.
Without them the quilt would unravel.
Ironically, the knots make the quilt stronger.

The Quilt-maker uses a variety of colors in His quilts.
He uses all types of designs.
Some are very simple…some are more complicated.
The Quilt-maker focuses on the beauty of the finished piece.
No one quilt is better than another.

There is blood on His quilt.
The blood of His Son.
Pricked not by a needle, but by nails on the cross.
Instead of making the quilt undesirable, the Blood makes the quilt precious.

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. (Ephesians 2:13)

Oh, for eyes to see the knots of our lives as something that strengthens us rather than something that unravels us.
Oh, for eyes to see the beauty of the imperfections that are precious in His sight.

We are His Masterpiece…His Handiwork…His Creation.

He has made everything beautiful in its time. (Ecclesiastes 3:11)