The Quilt Maker

Mel is in Spain right now. This weekend, her and the team she is with had a conference for a group of unchurched women. The conference was based around quilting. Mel led one of the conference sessions, so I wanted to share the presentation that she did. 

What is the purpose of a quilt? For some it may be simply decoration - something pretty to look at. For others, quilting is a hobby that brings joy to them. But the quilt itself was designed with a purpose.

I like to think that the very first quilt was made of leftover scraps of fabric from other projects or even clothes that had reached their useful end. The fabrics were not chosen because they were pretty, or the colors coordinated, but instead they were chosen because they were available. The quilter arranged them so that they fit together and could be sewn without wasting any piece. There was also a fabric was chosen for the back portion of the quilt. The part of the quilt that I want talk to you about now is the batting, the stuffing, the filler of the quilt. The batting of the quilt is what really gives it purpose. If it were not for this important part of the quilt, it would simply be limp scraps of fabric sewn together. The quilt would have no substance. It would serve no purpose. The quilt may look pretty, but without the batting it would not protect anyone from harsh winds or cold winter air.

Now, we can’t fill the quilt with just anything. It has to be the proper material. We can’t just toss some rocks or glass in there and call it finished. That would do more harm than good. It would bruise and cut whoever tried to hold it. We can’t fill the quilt with rose petals, those are too soft. They will quickly break down and lose
their form in the quilt.

Just as a quilt must be filled with the right materials to serve its purpose, we must be filled with the proper things to serve our purpose.

As I look back on my life, I can see where God has filled my life with experiences that have prepared me for the purpose He has for me. The patchwork of experiences from my life may look different from everyone else, but the material that He fills me with is the same material He fills everyone else with. My patchwork is filled with happiness, sadness, good choices, bad choices, times of clarity and times of confusion. My patchwork is
different from yours, but what fills the void in my life is the same thing that can fill the void in your life. See, just as the patchwork and the backing of a quilt are next to useless without the batting; so are the experiences of our lives if they are not accompanied by the God who is our quilter.

Now, we could choose to fill our lives with many things. Good things, or bad things. There could be things that make our lives look good from the outside, or things that are good for a while but eventually turn bad. The bad things that we could fill our lives with are usually easy to spot. Addictions, unhealthy relationships, the list could go on and on. Some people fill their lives with things that seem good and healthy at first but eventually turn bad. Think about people who work to support their families but eventually become so consumed with the career that they abandon their families for their jobs. Sometimes people even fill their lives with things that look good, but they are doing them for the wrong reason. They are filling their lives with good deeds but they do them simply to make themselves look good. These are not the kind of things we want to fill our lives with.

I was always a "good" person. I was good in school. I listened to my parents. I never got in trouble. When my friends got in trouble at school, I was the one there shaking my head and thinking, "I told you so!" At that time, I had never thought that a prayer I said when I was seven could have such an awesome effect on my life as it does now. Now I know that because Jesus has given me life, he has given that life purpose. I had not grasped the idea that my purpose was not found in myself and what i did. I had to learn that my purpose was found in what God had for me to do. When I was 15 years old,  this realization came to me. I was standing in the school parking lot with a friend and it was then that I shared what I believed for the first time. I shared my love for Christ and what he had done for me. My words then were not just for the benefit of my friend but God was speaking to me also.

Since then, God has lead me to discover His purpose for my life. I no longer fill my time with "good things" but I fill my life with HIS "goodness." I have learned that he is my goodness. He is my purpose. He is the batting of my life.

Just as a quilt must be filled with good material by the quilt maker, our lives must be filled with goodness by the life giver. These things will sustain our lives so that we may fulfill the purpose God has for us.

Pray for Mel as she finishes up her time on this short term trip and travels home. Our first email newsletter will be coming out soon, so if you would like to receive that, you can subscribe using the form on the Jeremy and Mel page. Thank you for your continued support!

Our needs...His Glorious Riches

"And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen."

- Philippians 4:19-20

We are just in the beginning stages of fundraising for our ministry but already we are seeing how God is opening doors of opportunity. God is demonstrating His faithfulness as we begin to make calls and contact friends, family and churches to share our story and calling. 

He has already shown us how He will provide by giving us our very first monthly supporters last week. We had not even planned to present our story that night but because He is good, the opportunity was given. We sat across the table from a couple who had "adopted" us while Jeremy was  a youth pastor. They have consistently opened themselves up to us as friends and mentors. They are two of the most giving people I know and we are so grateful for the way they have promised to support this ministry. 

I have been sitting here filling in dates that have already been booked at churches I know and ones I don't. As I see our calender already filling up, I can't help but become overwhelmed. Not overwhelmed with stress or anxiety but with gratitude and thankfulness knowing that God has already prepared the hearts of those who will hear our story. 

Long before this calling was revealed to me or to Jeremy, God knew. He knew the needs we will have and the goals we will need to reach. He knows the exact dollar amount that we will need so that we can be on the field. As big this challenge as it may seem to us, God is bigger. He has a plan as to how we will meet this goal and He is making the way for us to meet it.  I have faith that the right people, at the right time will feel lead to support the ministry God called us be a part of. 

It has become clear to me how important it is for people to realize who they are really supporting when they pledge to our ministry. They are not giving money to us each month. They are not giving money to One Mission Society each month. No, instead the individuals, couples and families who will financially partner with us are giving to God. The money that we receive is a gift from God. You give to God and God gives to us. 

Thank you to those who are praying for us. Thank you to those who have supported us along the way. And thank you to those who will give to God as He gives to us in this ministry.We are blessed to be called to this specific ministry just as each Christian is blessed to be called to his or her own specific ministry. 

We are a Patchwork.

Three weeks from today I will be in Madrid with a group of eleven other women. Together, with several others Spanish ladies, we will be doing a conference for many unchurched women at Peña de Horeb. The conference will use the pieces of a quilt to depict our relationship with God.

The front of the quilt displays the patchwork of our lives. The experiences and times that have made us who we are today. God uses these experiences, as chaotic and as unplanned as they may seem, to mold our hearts into what He needs them to be.

The batting of the quilt is what we fill our lives with. Do we seek God each day or do we fill our lives with junk? Do we desire things that will be good for us (keep us warm like the batting of a quilt) or bad things that in the end will do us no good (imagine if a quilt was filled with rocks or glass)?

The back of the quilt is Christ and our Christian fellowship. Christ gives us support, covers our sins and makes us complete. The Christian friends we surround ourselves with are the ones who will be there to hold us up and encourage us. They will help us grow and encourage us in our walk with Christ. The back of the quilt is important because without it, the batting would be exposed to the world and ultimately be destroyed.

Lastly, the binding of the quilt is the Holy Spirit working in our lives. He weaves all things together so that we can see how God has worked. Although the binding may be difficult to see, we know it's there because when a quilt is folded, unfolded, thrown around it remains in one piece. The Holy Spirit is the binding is our binding that is stronger than any wind or rain and will keep us together.

"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28

"Where can I go from your Spirit?
    Where can I flee from your presence?" Psalm 139:7

"So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:18

I am so excited to have the chance to get  a small taste of the work Jeremy and I will be a part of. As we prepare to begin fundraising (our class ends this week) the reality of our calling is becoming clearer and clearer. I have no doubt we are doing what we need to do and we are going where we need to go. 

I can clearly see the hand of God working in our lives as we look forward. 

I am setting my mind on good things. I am claiming Ephesians 3:14-21 as my prayer for Jeremy and I as well the team already working in Spain. 

"For this reason I kneel before the Father,  from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name.  I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love,  may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,  to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." 

Ephesians 3:14-21

I am learning to pray big. As we look at the next 9-12 months, we have a big task before us. But it is nothing bigger than anything that has already been done. I have faith that we will accomplish all that must be accomplished in the right timing. Our God is faithful and He is punctual. 

Please continue to pray for us. We are so thankful for all of the support and prayers we have already received.