9781577487371

Life is a patchwork of separate experiences that come together into a unified whole - much like a handmade quilt. Author Mary Tatem takes that theme and weaves it into one hundred devotionals, offering insight into peaceful, successful, and godly living. God is shown as the Designer of our days, the One Who quilts the fabric of our existence. Besides the encouraging devotional material, The Quilt of Life includes a bonus feature: practical tips for the quilter.

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Chapter One

Welcome to the

Warmth of Quilts

Quilts wrap our hearts in warm emotions. They represent time, energy, and planning. The hours required to create a quilt offer plenty of opportunity to think about the person for whom it is intended. When combining needlework with prayer, a quilter catches a glimpse of the love of God who stitches the fabric of our lives with His plans and purposes for our good and not our destruction.

A quilt bridges the generation gap by connecting people from the past with people yet to come. Perhaps that longing to participate in the future gives quilting its strong appeal. A quilt represents a reach for immortality. We stitch hoping our lives, our personalities, our struggles, and our joys will find a place of remembrance in the minds and emotions of others.

While reading these pages, tap into the heartbeat of our Creator, the Master quilter, who designs our lives using His perfect pattern. Skillfully placing the lights and darks of our lives, He joins the mountains and valleys of our days to make us into comforters who warm others.

Relax with this book for a few moments each week allowing the thread of God's truths to beautify and stabilize your life while you become God's work of art.

Surprise Changes

"Give, and it will be given to you.

A good measure, pressed down,

shaken together and running over,

will be poured into your lap.

For with the measure you use,

it will be measured to you."

Luke 6:38 NIV

One only needed to step inside the scarred front door of the middle school to feel the poverty and neglect of the youngsters who attended it. In this school learning and sharing were not priorities. The children's days were dedicated to defending their rights. In the middle of this discouraging environment, Mary Fran tried day after day to teach home economics. No one cared. One day she arrived in class carrying a huge shopping bag of colorful fabric scraps. When she dumped them on the table, curious eighth graders crowded around.

"Has anyone ever heard of safe houses for battered women?" she asked. They had. Some even spoke of relatives who had spent time in one of these havens for women who, beaten by husbands or boyfriends, feared for their lives.

"I'm looking for volunteers to make quilts to put on the beds at a battered women's safe house. I'm hoping these quilts will warm and comfort some women who are afraid and in despair."

To Mary Fran's delight, four girls and one boy volunteered. They enjoyed selecting bright and cheerful prints from the piles of donated materials. Their teacher marveled at the conscientious efforts her students made to cut even squares. The room buzzed with excitement the day they laid the squares out on tables to decide what arrangement of the various colors and patterns looked best. After a few suggestions, the students were careful not to put all the red tones at one end and all the yellows at the other. For the first time in their lives, they were striving for artistry. Next, they used serger machines at the school to stitch the squares together into five quilts. As the squares of the top were sewn to the backing and batting material, they chattered with pride over their attractive quilts. The children enjoyed a rare sense of accomplishment.

The following morning, Mary Fran arrived in her classroom to discover someone had stolen one quilt overnight. She dreaded telling the class. The group of kids who had so far only exhibited a "what's in it for me" attitude amazed her with their response. The children agreed with a girl who said, "Well, if someone took it, maybe they really needed a quilt to keep them warm and show them some people care about what happens to other people."

When we use God's pattern for living, God often gives us surprising little twists of benefits beyond what we expected. By giving to others, these thirteen-year-old children shook off their "me first or I get even" attitude to develop an important character trait--generosity. They learned to consider the needs of others ahead of their own desires. When we give to God, He returns to us growth and maturity.

Tip

Before washing fabric, use

the serger sewing machine to

stitch the edges of your

material to prevent fraying.

* * *

God's Pattern

When we practice giving to others,

God changes us,

and we gain the unexpected blessing of

receiving extra joy as we become more like Christ.