“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened.” ~Acts 15:25-26
Today, I would like to share both a sermon our pastor told a few weeks ago, and a quilting project that I just finished this week. Acts 16: 25-31 begins with Paul and Silas praising God while chained in a jail cell. The events leading up to their arrest are seemingly unfair and a great loss for Paul’s mission to spread the Gospel (read Acts 16:16-24). Instead of feeling dejected, Paul and Silas praised God despite their circumstances. Often we are so caught up in the plans that we have set for ourselves, that we fail to see the opportunity to glorify God in our momentary loses.
This weeks featured project was a UFO (unfinished-object) from my gramma. It is a table decoration. My gramma had the two different blocks above. There were 16 of the smaller blocks (picture on the left). These blocks were paper pieced, so they were beautifully symmetrical and easy to put together. With much pinning and praying, I was able to achieve some of the most aligned seams I have experienced thus far in my quilting career.
“When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing the prisoners had escaped. But Paul cried out with a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.” And the jailer called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas. Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” ~Acts 16:27-31
Clearly, the doors opening and the shackles falling of their feet was a miracle of God! This was Paul and Silas’s opportunity to flee; however, they knew the consequences that the jailer would face if the prisoners escaped. Thus, Paul and Silas used God’s gift to love and serve the jailer. They lost, so that the jailer might win. They laid down their freedom, so that the jailer might live. This act of love led the jailer to desire the salvation that Paul and Silas had received. The story concludes with the conversion and baptism of the jailer and everyone in his household. Not only this, but the leaders of the city decide to also let Paul and Silas go free from jail the very next day! If Paul and Silas had not trusted in the Lord and remained in the cell, the jailer might have never heard the good news of Christ. We are called to follow Paul’s example and use the suffering and trials of this life to worship all the more! How do we lose in order to love and care for others? What sacrifices might God be asking of us today? There is nothing too small, done out of love, that God will not use for His Kingdom’s glory!
This is a video of free-motion loopy Christmas tree on the inside circle. If you are interested in learning about free-motion quilting, feel free to reach out! I am no expert, but I have been working on it for a couple of years now. See below for a slide show of the smaller designs I quilted on the outside ring.
This project was a lot of fun because I was able to play around with different quilting designs. In order to not distract from the eloquent piecing design, I used thread to match the colors of the fabric in each section. Finishing a project is always an opportunity to glorify and praise God!
God has given me every talent that I posses. Every beautiful artwork I create should point towards the amazing work of our Father, because I would not be capable of anything apart from Him! We should seek to use these gifts of God to love and serve others. Even the small miracles that seem to be just for us, such as perfectly aligned seams, ultimately can be used for other’s benefits and to glorify Christ!
Final Product! Unfortunately, this quilt won’t be used for another 11 months from now, when Christmas rolls around again!
I promise to move away from Christmas projects soon! I finished by hand binding with a variety of the white fabrics that were integrated throughout the quilt. Thankfully, Gramma never threw anything that might be useful away, so I had the exact fabrics that were originally used to create the inside blocks. Who knows how long ago this project was started?!
I would love to see any projects you are currently working on! I even challenge you to pull out some UFO’s and finish them! Send me your pictures, because I would love to see them! Please enjoy this very accurate description of a quilter’s facial expressions… God bless!
Quilt Bus 
Your project is beautiful and your heart for the Lord is even more beautiful. I enjoyed your blog! Thank you for sharing your heart.
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