To pray is to change…

 

“To pray is to change. Prayer is the central avenue God uses to transform us.”

 

From my morning readings in “A Celebration of Discipline”, by Richard J. Foster.

 

Newly emerged butterfly, Frank Church Wilderness, ID, a photo by Tatiana Gettelman on Flickr.

Transformation.  What a dream!  And directed by our Father, who so truly loves us and desires us to grow and mature and fulfill our potential.  I have not been able to transform myself by will, and this is the wisdom passed on by many.  Only through God’s intervention can we change, but we must ask Him to change us, and prayer is the path.

 

 

 

 

Favourite Documentary – The Privileged Planet

Amazon.com: The Privileged Planet: John Rhys-Davies, Lad Allen: Movies & TV.

 

This is a great documentary which feeds into the Intelligent Design theory.  It explores how many factors affected our world becoming what it is and allowing us to be here.  Then, amazingly, it shows that not only is this world perfect for complex life, but it is also perfect for allowing us to understand natural law.  And this is supposed to have happened by chance?

I found it fascinating.

Every Day You Dare…

“You, my friend, are a warrior. Every day you dare to dream, you fight back the darkness and add a little more light to the world. When you keep your heart open, the kingdom wins.”

From my morning readings in “You’re Made for a God-Sized Dream”, by Holley Gerth.

A Perfect Morning, a photo by Extra Medium on Flickr.

A real dream isn’t something fluffy or easy.  It’s work.  It’s commitment.  It’s tenacity in the face of discouragement.  It takes a decision every day to keep the dream going.  To fight for it.  It may seem safer to closer your heart so you won’t be hurt, but don’t!  Keep going, keep the dream alive.

Making waves, adding borders and backing…

Threads…Looking forward to using all the colors!

Each layer has a line of stitching 1/8″ from the folded edge.

Adding borders–Very excited to find this cream-colored fabric at the fabric store!  The little asterisks reminded me of starfish and the circles of seashells.  The stars and circles are about 1/8″ high.

The cream borders set off the colors in the quilt.

Someone gave me this wonderful tropical fish fabric.  I like to have fun with backings of my quilts and this pattern fits the bill!

The wall hanging is now “layered,” with the top, batting (blankety material in-between) and backing secured together with temporary quilter’s spray adhesive.  Saves a lot of time, not having to make the large basting stitches to hold the layers together for the quilt stitching.  Can’t wait to add some texture and interest with the quilting and fun threads!

Prayer:  Dear Father, Please continue to work in my niece’s life.  Help her continue to understand and trust that You have all the pieces of her life in Your Hands, and that You love to add layers of Your love to her heart.

Leap for Joy – Designing the Piece

The first step in designing a canvas is to frame the image as I want it to appear.  This involves pulling in or out until I like how the image works.  If I’m planning words, they must be put in at this stage, so that enough room is left for them.  I also need to evaluate how good the image will look at the intended finished size, and what point size of canvas will be needed to get the desired level of detail.

For this, piece, here is what I ended up with.  My goal was to have this piece weigh in at 5″ x 7″, and be stitched on 10 point canvas.  That will make it a manageable size for the recipient, and allow me to stitch the piece in a timely fashion.

Leap for Joy | Flickr – Photo Sharing!.

Prayer: Father, help them to find joy in the midst of their trials and to trust in the joy to come.

HOW DOES GOD SAY, “I WILL HELP YOU?”

He says He wants us to carry everything to Him in prayer…

This is lovely!

Under the Cover of Prayer

by Rose Spillenaar Harmer

Reading Psalms 139:13-14 (NLT) is amazing:

“You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous – how well I know it.”

Of course I will help you.
Do not be afraid for I am your true strength.
You draw wisdom, understanding and knowledge from this hour with Me.

It is a quiet understanding that I will help you with all things,
Because I love and care for you
I will give you courage and boldness.

Remember the old adage ‘there are no stupid questions’.
It is only when you neglect to ask Me or others that
you stop growing and learning.

I know you feel comfortable with Me because we have had
a meaningful relationship for many…

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A brotherly relation with all other souls…

“… prayer must overflow the boundaries of selfhood to include the life, the needs of the race; accepting as a corollary of its filial relation with God a brotherly relation with all other souls however diverse, and at every point replacing ‘mine’ with ‘ours’. “

From my morning readings in “Abba” by Evelyn Underhill

 

Prayer Wheel, a photo by darkmatter on Flickr.  Used under Creative Commons Attribution License.

 

If I claim God as my Father, I must accept all His children as my brothers.  I must pray not for me, but for us.

Leap for Joy – Inspiration

I just heard of a woman in our church who is the mother of 8, and has been hospitalized.  I want to get the family out an encouragement piece fairly quickly.  But I don’t have a design I think is appropriate that will stitch up quickly  (a common problem with this kind of ministry…).

I remembered an image I had picked out for possible use with a Morning Reading post, that gave the feel I wanted for this kind of piece.  What do you think of this leaping lamb?

Springing Lamb | Flickr – Photo Sharing!. by Craig Cullum

Prayer: Father, may this family and especially this mother pass through the winter of their trials, and come to leap for joy at Your springtime.

Valley of Shadow – Treeline

To stitch the treeline at the front of the valley, I chose to use a primarily vertical stitch of varying lengths.  This gives the look of dense pine forest.

Valley of Shadow – Treeline, a photo by Carmen CS on Flickr.

Prayer: Father, in their darkest moments, help them remember that You are with them.  Help them to feel you love and accept your comfort.

A perfect personal relationship with God…

“We never think of religion aright unless we think of it in terms of personal relationship. The aim of religion is a perfect personal relationship with God…”

From my morning readings in “The Letters of John and Jude”, Daily Study Bible Series, by William Barclay.

 

Father and Baby Feet, a photo by Tampa Band Photos on Flickr.

Of course we can never have such a relationship on our own merit.  But we can strive to keep our relationship strong, vibrant, living.  This is what religion aims to do.  But just joining a church and attending services doesn’t do it.  We have to actively live our lives in a way that feeds that relationship.

For me, this means studying the Word, celebrating God, working for the kingdom.

What does it mean for you?