The Patchwork Quilt

The Patchwork Quilt

            Making quilts has become a very popular hobby today.  In fact our church has a quilt making class where anyone can learn how to make quilts.  It’s a little different now than it was when I was a child.  No one used a sewing machine and every stitch was done by hand.  I recall a particular incident when I was about 5 or 6 years old. 

            My mother had sewn many small pieces of material together until it became the topside of a quilt.  Other ladies of the community came to our house and using 4 long boards, which rested on the backs of chairs, they tacked on the quilt top.  To me it seemed like a tent, so while the ladies worked on the quilt, I took my dolls and played on the floor underneath it.  I looked up on the bottom of the quilt top and could see all these hundreds of ugly strings hanging down.  It was really ugly and I didn’t see how that could be a quilt.

            However, by the end of the day, they took it off the boards and turned it over.  To my surprise, the quilt was beautiful with different pieces of material making pretty patterns.  I looked it all over and saw piece of material that was just like some of my dresses Mother made for me. 

            It’s been many years since I played under a quilt being put together, but I can clearly see how it is so much like a person’s life.  Many times our life seems to be ugly and ragged; without rhyme or reason and we wonder where God is in all of this.  Let me tell you: He is right there looking from above at the finished product.

            Just like a quilt has a pattern, God has a pattern for your life.  “For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11 (TLB)  Even when things happen in your life that you don’t understand, God understands and is trying to ‘piece it together’ according to His plan.

            Even in the worst of situations God not only sees what is happening to us now, but He also can see the future for His children, if you are a believer.  Romans 8:28 “We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”  He sees the ‘finished product’ of our life.

            Why does God care so much about how I live?  He tells us in Psalm 139:13, “For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother's womb.  If you are a woman and have had babies, you know while that baby was growing inside of you that you already loved it.  It’s the same with God who formed us in our mother’s womb.  In the same scripture in verses 15-16, “You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.”  You can easily see how God has His hand on your life from the time you were conceived and every day of your life.  God has kept track of you each and every day until your time comes and His plan for you is complete.

Is it true that God knows how long our life is going to be?  King David knew that God held his life in his hands and knew we sometimes forget how quickly the years go by.  We seem to think we will remain on this earth forever.  “LORD, remind me how brief my time on earth will be. Remind me that my days are numbered— how fleeting my life is.” (Psalm 39:4)  God gives us so many days to live before He calls us to be with him.  Remember in Ecclesiastes 3:1-2 “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:  A time to be born, and a time to die.”     

           God is our heavenly ‘quilter’ and keeps putting our life into his hands. We can plan to do all sorts of things, but God is still in charge if we allow him.  Just when we think we have it all planned out and our plans fall apart; we become disheartened.  Listen to this: “A man's heart plans his way; but the LORD directs his steps.” (Proverbs 16:9)  When things don’t seem to go as we planned, tell the Lord, “Okay God, you take over.”  You will notice how much smoother the task when God has him way in your life.  One day you will understand and God will show you the finished product and you will praise God for how he put it all together.  Just like a beautiful quilt. Amen

 

 

 

 

 

 

Are You An Honest Person?

Are You An Honest Person?

           I was talking to some people the other day and we got on the subject of being an honest person.  My mother taught me as a very young child that stealing was wrong and to never, never take something that didn’t belong to you.  Not only did she teach me, but she was a great example to me. 

                
           If someone gave my mother too much change back, she never kept it but she always gave it back, even if it was a penny.  I never saw her try to take more than she paid for not was she dishonest in any dealings.  So I grew up to be a very honest person and taught my children the same. 

          As the years went by I was confronted by many opportunities to be dishonest, but to tell you the truth, I would have lost my job rather than cheat or cover up things for others.  In fact, one time I quit a long-time job because my boss wanted me to watch certain people and report to her about things they did or said.  I went to the CEO and was told, “You can’t fight the system.”  I did the only honest thing I could – I quit.

A few years later I was working at a new position and was manager of my department.  I was extremely busy, but I also was receiving a lot of personal phone calls.  One day someone from another department said to me, “You sure are making a lot of personal phone calls.”  At first I was a little upset because it really wasn’t any of that person’s business what I was doing.  Then I got to thinking about it and realized I was being dishonest; I was stealing time from the company and getting paid for it.  I changed my way of doing that.

          2 Corinthians 1:12 says, “We are so glad that we can say with utter honesty that in all our dealings we have been pure and sincere, quietly depending upon the Lord for his help and not on our own skills.”   Notice it says, ‘in all our dealing’.  This means is whatever we do from cheating, stealing, or being deceitful.  It means to not even taking a pencil that doesn’t belong to you.  Remember in whatever you do – you are being watched.

         Way back in Old Testament times, the people were warned to “Be fearless in your stand for truth and honesty.”  2 Chronicles 19:11 Trust is a very important thing in life.  It’s important to have people trust you because they know you are honest.  Others who trust you bring promotion, success and prosperity.  I think of Abraham Lincoln, the 16^th. President, 1860, was called, ‘Honest Abe’ because he was honest in all he did; he never cheated and never lied.  To this day the name ‘Honest Abe’ is who he is known by. 

          Who would want to be remembered as liar, thief and cheater?  I would rather be remembered as someone who never lied to anyone; who never cheated anyone and who never took anything that didn’t belong to them. 

         Why do we remember Abraham in the Old Testament, because he was a ‘Friend of God’?   Why did God call him that?  “He was the only truly righteous man living on the earth at that time. He tried always to conduct his affairs according to God’s will.” Genesis 6:9 (TLB) Abraham was an honest man who obeyed God’s commands.  Dishonesty will get you nowhere, but honesty will take you everywhere.

            Be the example they can follow.  Your children watch you and they will do what they see you doing.

TRUST, DELIGHT, COMMIT AND REST

Trust, Delight, Commit and Rest

 

 Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
 Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.
 Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass.
 He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday.
 Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him.                 Psalm 37:3-7 (NKJV)

            We all have our good days and bad days; days when were ready to give in and give up.  Depression can eat you up if you have no one to turn to for help.  You may feel like you’re no good for anyone and they would be better off without you.  You might even have thought about ending it all.

            STOP!  I really do know what you’re going through; I’ve been there.  Many years ago I was that person.  I felt like I had no hope whatsoever.  I hated myself and blamed everything and everybody.  When I was at my lowest point in my life; God came into it.  I wasn’t even looking for him; I didn’t call on his name or even pray for help, but He was there. 

            I don’t have space to write my whole testimony, but I will add a line from a very funny movie, “Pee Wee Herman’s Great Adventure”.  A girl named Dottie was telling him the sad story of her life and he said to her, “I know; I’ve lived it, Dottie.”  It was a very funny line in the show, but in real life, I can say, “I know, I’ve lived it, friend.”

            It’s hard to give encouragement to someone who is going through some ‘stuff’, if you haven’t been through it.  So – let me encourage you.  The grass really is greener on the other side.  There is hope and there is happiness waiting for you.  God is the only reason that I am alive today; not only alive, but happy and filled with joy.  I am walking in the favor of God because of 4 things I will share with you.  These 4 things come from Psalm 37:3-7

            The first thing that happened after I asked Jesus into my heart was reading the Bible and discovering I could TRUST God.  I was at a point in my life that I didn’t trust anyone because I knew they would let me down.  However, God was different.  I began to look back over my life and could see how I came through things I couldn’t have without divine help.  God literally saved me from myself a number of times.  I came to realize that a God who would sacrifice the life of his son for me was a God I could trust; a God who was faithful.  I also knew he had never let me go without; I didn’t always have my wants met, but my needs had always been supplied my whole life.  Praise God!

            The second thing I learned was to ‘DELIGHT in the Lord’; to find joy in my life because of who he was.  I found delight in the fact that God loved me beyond what I could even imagine.  He wanted the very best for me; he wanted me to be happy and to enjoy prosperity and good health.  I read in 3 John 2, “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.”   This doesn’t mean that I would never get sick or not always have money, because we live in this world and things happen to both good and bad people.  But this is what God wants for me.

            It also says in that verse that God “will give us the desires of our heart”.  This is probably one of the most misinterpreted scriptures in the Bible.  We need to take in the entire verse because it says “IF” If we give our whole life to God, our desires will be godly things.  If our desires are to be rich or to have our own airplane or to take a cruise or have a big house, we are asking for selfish desires to be fulfilled.  If the desire of our heart is to become a missionary, or to see people set free, or to serve God more, He will give you those things.  It doesn’t mean to delight in our selves, but in Him.  He never fails.

            The third thing I learned was to COMMIT my life to Him.  When I was a new Christian, someone once asked me, “Can’t you talk about anything but God?”  I said, “Sure; let’s talk about Jesus”.  Why wouldn’t I want to talk about him all the time?  “He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps.  He has put a new song in my mouth-- Praise to our God.”   Psalm 40:2-3  

            These changes in my life didn’t all happen suddenly, but gradually as I gave more and more of myself to Him.  I was not financially secure and when I read in the Bible God wanted me to prosper, I realized I needed to let him prosper me and so I began tithing 10% of what money came into our household.  I could hardly believe it when even though our wages didn’t increase, we never ran out of money.  When appliances died, we were able to replace them.  They were not always new, but always supplied our need.  God has blessed us so abundantly that I can’t even count the times. 

            I’m still committed, even after all these years.  I can’t imagine not being committed to my church and to people.  I can’t play the piano for three services a week, like I once did; I don’t teach a Sunday School class like I used to and don’t go to all the retreats and conferences, but I do what I can.  This is what causes me to write these teachings on a blog every week, spending many hours of study.  God called me teach his Word and I will do that somehow because I’m committed.  Being committed to God is not just repeatedly do things like going to church every Sunday, or tithing your ten percent, its because its part of being faithful to God.  After all, He is faithful to me.

            The fourth thing is REST in Him.  What this means is to be ‘patient’.  We live in an ‘instant’ world and we have grown to expect things to happen immediately.  God is not one to be controlled by what people say and do.  He wants us to give our problems and trials to Him and then leave them there, resting in the fact that He will take care of these things in His own time and way. 

            Two or three years ago I had cancer and then broke my shoulder in four places.  I know my children thought I would never get out of my chair again, but I knew God was healing me and I was resting in Him.  He didn’t let me down, but gradually healed me and put me back on my feet.  Last month I went up in a balloon and rode in a helicopter.  I’m pretty proud of doing those things, but I give my heavenly Father the glory for giving me the ability to do it.  I never thought I had the patience, but it took a time of not being able to do anything to learn to ‘rest’ in Him.

            Trust in God, Delight in His ways, Commit your life to Him and Rest in His promises and your life will only get better and better.  The joy of the Lord is my strength and it can be yours if you let it.

 

THE LOVE OF GOD

THE LOVE OF GOD

 “And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is.”  Ephesians 3:18 (NLT)

 Trying to explain the love of God is like looking through a giant telescope and seeing the vastness of the universe; it looks to be endless.  So is God’s love; there are no adequate words to describe it.  I hear people all the time saying, “I love God”.  It seems to be a rather puny remark when compared to how God loves us.  I only know this, ^“For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”  John 3:16 (NLT)

There are those in this world who have never felt loved; then they haven’t experienced the benefits of being a Believer in Jesus.  There are those who are so lonely they end up in deep depression; then they haven’t understood the message of Jesus Christ, because he said, “He would never leave us or forsake us.  Here’s what he wants to do for you, “He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along.” Psalm 40:2

Many of us do not understand that God’s love is constantly surrounding us; constantly watching over us.  I could list more than a hundred scriptures telling of God’s love and care for us.  3 John 1:2 is for those who worry over financial problems: “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.”

Whatever your need is; when you are afraid to move forward, read Isaiah 52:12; “For the LORD will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard.”  I love this; whatever I’m facing, God has gone before me to look over the situation and I don’t have to be looking backwards; fearing what’s coming up behind me.  God is already watching my back; nothing will get by Him.

I once heard a pastor on the radio talking about the word, ‘El Shaddai’ and the meaning of it.  It means, “God is the Sufficient One; God is Enough!”  Listen, He loves you so much that he wants to provide all your needs.  Look in Luke 12:27-31, "Look at the lilies! They don’t toil and spin, and yet Solomon in all his glory was not robed as well as they are. And if God provides clothing for the flowers that are here today and gone tomorrow, don’t you suppose that he will provide clothing for you, you doubters?  And don’t worry about food—what to eat and drink; don’t worry at all that God will provide it for you. All mankind scratches for its daily bread, but your heavenly Father knows your needs. He will always give you all you need from day to day if you will make the Kingdom of God your primary concern."

You don’t always ‘feel’ God’s love; He might bring a great happening in your life, or it may be just a small thing.  My mother depended on God for everything and she prayed about everything.  One time she told me she had difficulty combing her hair after she had a stroke.  She prayed and God always helped her with it.  There were times she needed things from the store and she prayed; sure enough someone would call and ask if she needed anything from the store.  This might seem like coincidences, but I can tell you that God hears every prayer and loves you so much he wants to take care of you in even in small things.

There is a song called, “His Love” and here are a couple of verses:

 

His love is higher than the highest of mountains
His love is deeper than the deepest of seas
His love, it stretches to the farthest horizon
And His love, it reaches to me

His love is stronger than the angels and demons
His love, it keeps me in my life’s darkest hour
His love secures me on the pathway to heaven
And His love is my strength and power.

 

Our pastor preached a message one morning from John 15:16 “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.”  Don’t miss this; God loves us so much that we didn’t even have to look for him because he already chose us.  God knew us before we were even born and loved us then.  He loved us when we didn’t even serve him and he loved us when we sinned.  He readily forgives us when we repent.  Why?  He expects us to go out and bear fruit by leading others to road of salvation.  We might say that we decided to follow Jesus, and we did have to make a choice, but in truth, he was already calling us to him. 

I don’t know of any other than God the Father who sent his Son, Jesus, to this sinful earth to die for so many undeserving people, unless His love was beyond what we could understand.  To not accept His amazing love would be like throwing our very life in his face. 

Never forget that you are chosen and appointed and filled with God’s power.  The Holy Spirit lives within you because God sent him to be our Comforter.  What love God has for us!

"God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life" . John 3:16 (NKJV)