Photo: Martha G. Brady
Have you ever been to a quilt show? It is fun to see the amazing variety. The first quilt show I went to many years ago in Houston, TX was massive. The quilts on display covered more than one floor of the convention center there. I didn’t have time to see all of them because I was only there for the day. I only saw the prize winning quits.
But I noticed something very interesting about the quilts. Some were designed to be works of art. (Click the pdf box when you get to the page to see a few of the quilts.) They were not designed to ever be used as a quilt. They were purely a work of art for a wall. They would never have stood up to frequent washing like a used quilt would need. They were stunning to see, with their amazing color combinations, detail and designs. There is no question about it.
But in the everyday of life, they would never have stood up. Some of the other quilts were not as impressive to look at, but they would have been useful for curling up with at anytime. Still others, were beautiful, but were made from fabrics that could be washed easily. You could tell that a lot of thought had been put into their design and piecing, but they were not designed to be pieces of art. They were designed to be beautiful and useful as quilts in the home.
What kind of quilt are you?
Think about what kind of quilt God may have designed you to be…or may be preparing you to be. Is He preparing you to be a beautiful work of art that hangs on the wall and looks beautiful? That is what I always wanted to be. But it didn’t take me long to realize that was not going to be my niche in life. There are people who may have this purpose. Some certainly are designed to bring beauty into the world with their gifts of art, music, beautiful writing or other kinds of creativity. They are a blessing to all who are blessed to have them.
But many of us are designed to be useful kinds of quilts. As God develops our gifts, He brings out the beauty in us that come from Him. It sharpens the colors, makes the designs more beautiful and also makes the quilts more useful as we are willing to step out of our comfort zones to serve those around us..
Allow God to make you into a quilt that can be used for His glory, showing forth the beauty of His Spirit to those around you. For some of you, it will involve teaching; for others, helping, encouraging, using your gifts of faith, evangelism, mercy and so on.
But who are you, O man, to answer back to God?
Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me like this?”
Has the potter no right over the clay,
to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use
and another for dishonorable use?
What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power,
has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction,
in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy,
which he has prepared beforehand for glory—
even us whom he has called, not from the Jews only but also from the Gentiles?Rimans 9:20-24 ESV
