My mother taught me to knit when I was 5 years old. At first I just moved the stitches from one needle to the other, the only 'growth' happening when my mother 'borrowed' my work for a time. I remember well how I enjoyed the hours I sat in my little chair 'knitting' and proudly showed my Dad what I could do when he came home from work.
It has been a life long hobby for me.
Last summer , I picked up some yarn in a specialty wool shop on a vacation day with girl friends.
Because I was not willing to hold the group up, I took only a few minutes to peruse this shop wishing I could stay for hours. There was one yarn, however, that I simply could not pass by - a variegated yarn in my favourite colours, a blend of wool and silk from Italy, hand painted in Chile - how special is that?
I grabbed a couple of skeins and quickly paid for them, thinking that would at least be enough for a scarf.
But now, what pattern? What width? I soon realized I had only enough for a narrow scarf and I searched for a stitch pattern that would compliment rather than compete with the variegated yarn.
As I tried one pattern after another, after unraveling my work several times because it wasn't quite right, I finally settled on one that pleased me. As I worked my scarf, .my thoughts were inspired to recognize the many analogies my project pictured.
Let me share them with you.
1. I loved the yarn too much to 'pass it by'
Isn't that how God is pictured in scripture? Each one of us is too special in His eyes to 'pass us by' and He picks us up where He finds us.
2. I willingly paid the price. The yarn I bought was a little on the pricey side but I happily paid the price - it was worth it!
Hasn't God also, because we were so special to Him, paid the highest price possible - the death of His Son? He declares that we too were worth it to Him ...
3. I needed a special stitch to suit the yarn. Aren't each of us 'wonderfully knit together in our mother's womb' - each with our own DNA?
4. Finding a suitable pattern - For each of us, God looks for the perfect 'pattern' - or life circumstances - that will complement our talents, natural abilities, interests, circumstances, personality ... so that that when we are completed we will be satisfied and He will be pleased and glorified.
5. Errors and mistakes are so easily 'unraveled' ... I am also a seamstress and when I make a mistake in my garment I have to be pretty creative to cover it up, but I always know where it is and I can point out where it is, even if no one else would notice it. When I am knitting, and I make a mistake I can unravel my work to below the mistake and pick up the stitches again and continue knitting - no one, not even I could ever point to where the mistake is - it is as if it never was. That is how God forgives - it is as if it never was.
6. Stitch by stitch, row by row -- only the knitter knows what the end result will look like. Watching someone knit the question is invariably asked "what are you knitting?" Do we not often wonder the same about God's plan for our life ? "What are you making, God? I don't see what I will be."
7. Often in a knitted garment the wrong side does not show the beauty of the design the knitter is creating. It doesn't look pretty at all sometimes, especially if the design is worked with multiply yarns. So often the 'wrong' side of our life- this earthly side - does not show the glory of what God worked in and through us until it is revealed in eternity.
8. To a knitter its all about the knitting Someone so truly said..."My husband and kids think the purpose of knitting is the garment, but they don't know the purpose of knitting is the knitting." I often think of God looking at us with a 'knitter's heart'. Its all about what He wants to do for us, delighting in daily 'loading us with benefits', blessing us ... just enjoying being with us and in us... communing and fellowshipping with us.
9. When I bought the yarn to make a scarf, it was summer ! Not the season I could wear a wool/silk scarf over a sweater, but I worked on it anyway so I would have it put away ready to wear when the winter came. So often God also works in our lives 'out of season' and we think everything is going wrong. On the contrary, often it is God working into our life today what we will need tomorrow, preparing us to be ready for some purpose or task that He will ask us to do in the future.
10. I did not have enough yarn to make my scarf as long nor as wide as I would need the scarf to be to be able to wear it in any style of current fashion, so I needed to be creative. I had a little yarn left and out of it I fashioned a cabbage rose that I fastened to a band wrapped around the two ends of the scarf and I found some complementary yarn to lengthen the scarf with a fringe. Isn't God like that with us too? He has to work with very limited resources, I don't have much in me that is 'enough' and so God gets creative - He takes the 'little' I give Him to work with and He creatively makes it more beautiful than I could imagine possible !
God has worked so many ways into our daily lives by which we can 'see Him' if we are looking for Him.
Is He not ever so worthy of our love and devotion?
Let me share them with you.
1. I loved the yarn too much to 'pass it by'
Isn't that how God is pictured in scripture? Each one of us is too special in His eyes to 'pass us by' and He picks us up where He finds us.
2. I willingly paid the price. The yarn I bought was a little on the pricey side but I happily paid the price - it was worth it!
Hasn't God also, because we were so special to Him, paid the highest price possible - the death of His Son? He declares that we too were worth it to Him ...
3. I needed a special stitch to suit the yarn. Aren't each of us 'wonderfully knit together in our mother's womb' - each with our own DNA?
4. Finding a suitable pattern - For each of us, God looks for the perfect 'pattern' - or life circumstances - that will complement our talents, natural abilities, interests, circumstances, personality ... so that that when we are completed we will be satisfied and He will be pleased and glorified.
5. Errors and mistakes are so easily 'unraveled' ... I am also a seamstress and when I make a mistake in my garment I have to be pretty creative to cover it up, but I always know where it is and I can point out where it is, even if no one else would notice it. When I am knitting, and I make a mistake I can unravel my work to below the mistake and pick up the stitches again and continue knitting - no one, not even I could ever point to where the mistake is - it is as if it never was. That is how God forgives - it is as if it never was.
6. Stitch by stitch, row by row -- only the knitter knows what the end result will look like. Watching someone knit the question is invariably asked "what are you knitting?" Do we not often wonder the same about God's plan for our life ? "What are you making, God? I don't see what I will be."
7. Often in a knitted garment the wrong side does not show the beauty of the design the knitter is creating. It doesn't look pretty at all sometimes, especially if the design is worked with multiply yarns. So often the 'wrong' side of our life- this earthly side - does not show the glory of what God worked in and through us until it is revealed in eternity.
8. To a knitter its all about the knitting Someone so truly said..."My husband and kids think the purpose of knitting is the garment, but they don't know the purpose of knitting is the knitting." I often think of God looking at us with a 'knitter's heart'. Its all about what He wants to do for us, delighting in daily 'loading us with benefits', blessing us ... just enjoying being with us and in us... communing and fellowshipping with us.
9. When I bought the yarn to make a scarf, it was summer ! Not the season I could wear a wool/silk scarf over a sweater, but I worked on it anyway so I would have it put away ready to wear when the winter came. So often God also works in our lives 'out of season' and we think everything is going wrong. On the contrary, often it is God working into our life today what we will need tomorrow, preparing us to be ready for some purpose or task that He will ask us to do in the future.
10. I did not have enough yarn to make my scarf as long nor as wide as I would need the scarf to be to be able to wear it in any style of current fashion, so I needed to be creative. I had a little yarn left and out of it I fashioned a cabbage rose that I fastened to a band wrapped around the two ends of the scarf and I found some complementary yarn to lengthen the scarf with a fringe. Isn't God like that with us too? He has to work with very limited resources, I don't have much in me that is 'enough' and so God gets creative - He takes the 'little' I give Him to work with and He creatively makes it more beautiful than I could imagine possible !
God has worked so many ways into our daily lives by which we can 'see Him' if we are looking for Him.
Is He not ever so worthy of our love and devotion?
4 comments:
Oh...I remember the day you bought that yarn. And now you have something lovely to show for it! And it provided you with a life lesson to share with us all. You do that so well!
I remember that day and yarn, too. Great work on the scarf and nice job giving us a yarn lesson about God...
Your scarf is SO pretty. I love the little cabbage rose that adds a special touch. Your analogies are spot on. God loves us so much. Thank you, Julie for your prayer ministry, also. From time to time I've visited the prayer request section on MGCC and your prayers are so heart felt. ~Elaine
A perfect illustration. A great analogy. I too sometimes buy yarn, without a pattern....and then the fun begins. Looks like your results are more than satisfying.
We can both bring our yarn on our next outing.....
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