“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” ~ Ephesians 2:8-10
My puppy and my husband saw their first blizzard today up in Connecticut. The snow was fun for Rebel to jump around in, but the cold and wind was not for us! In light of the winter wonderland, I am excited to bring you a beautiful winter table decoration quilted by Robin Rice. This quilt is named the Winter Snowman Table Topper by Kimberbell. If you have quilting projects, please send me pictures! I would love to be able to showcase your hard work also! If you have comments, questions, or concerns about anything on this blog, please also reach out. I would love to be able to talk to you all more.
I love the book of Ephesians, and would like to share some thoughts on Ephesians 2:8-20.
The gift of salvation is from God. No matter how “good” or how “bad” you believe you are, your deeds can not save you from the wrath of God. But good news (the gospel)! God has sent His only son to save us! Out of His grace, He has chosen to give to those who are undeserving (us). We are saved by grace through faith. Enduring Word describes it like this: “We can think of water flowing through a hose. The water is the important part, but it is communicated through the hose. The hose does not quench your thirst; the water does. But the hose brings water to the place you can benefit from it.” Faith is the hose that brings us grace. Salvation can be a confusing topic, and I have not studied theology in depth, so this is not what I want to focus on in this post, but it is a really important concept! If you have questions about your salvation, I encourage you to read the Word and reach out to your pastor.
“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Although our works do not bring us salvation, once we are saved, we have work to do! Not only that, God has prepared good work created in Christ Jesus for us to accomplish! If you have placed your faith in Christ Jesus, you are God’s workmanship, a poem, and work of art. He has not saved you just from His wrath, but has saved you for you to accomplish beautiful things in his name. You are God’s masterpiece. You are the clay and He is the potter. He may not be finished with you, but He has a plan for you. He loves you! He has a purpose for you. We are called to daily choose to work with Christ. To work hard to be more like Him, so that our life can bring glory and praise not to ourselves, but to the Creator of the Universe. Who, by grace, loves us. Let us walk away from our old sinful desires, and walk towards the cross, towards our new self.
This quilt incorporated multiple techniques.
Robin used Kimberbell clear blue tiles to do the background quilting with the embroidery (see pictures above). This is an at home quilting technique that can be done on your home embroidery sewing machine. I am not promoting this product because I have never used it, but my mom really enjoys the Kimberbell products. If you have an embroidery machine and are not comfortable with free motion quilting, but want to quilt your own projects, you might like this product, too. The snowmen were done with the embroidery machine, and the rest of the quilt was pieced. I love the knitted looking fabric for the snowmen’s hats and the creative use of terry cloth fabric scraps for the snowmen’s faces.
You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
~Matthew 5:14-16
How does God want you to be light in this world?
When you buy or make a beautiful piece of artwork, you do not stuff it away in the attic to collect dust (hopefully). You display it proudly in your home, or you lovingly give it away to bring joy to others. Neither is God’s plan for your life to hide the good works He has done through you. His great love has transformed your life, and He has called you to be a light to those around you. What is He saying to you today? He has designed us all for a good work in Christ. It doesn’t have to be something huge. Maybe, His call on your life is to be His love to those in your small town and community. Or, His call on your life is to pack your bags and go across the world to proclaim His name. No matter the work He has created you for, He will be with you.
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
~1 Peter 2:9-10
Please Pray with me…
Lord, we pray that we may be faithful stewards of the blessings You have given us. We thank you for sending Your son, Jesus Christ, to die for our sins while we were unworthy. By Your grace and love, we may come before You cleansed. We pray that we serve Your will faithfully. Please open our eyes to the good work You have for us to do. Help us not to shy away from declaring Your name to all those we meet. Move in the lives of our family, friends, and those we meet who do not know Your love and grace. Help us to be Your light on the hill that will not be hidden. Thank You for making us into Your masterpiece for Your glory and not our own. Amen.
Quilt Bus 