Embroidery and Tapestry

Embroidery and Tapestry have been around for a long time. It is a fascinating art form and the end result is very interesting and lovely, an example of which you see in this first photo.

Corrie ten Boom, a lady who

spent lots of time in a German Concentration Camp during World War 2, said that life is like a piece of embroidery placed between us and God; we look up from underneath, (as we do in the second photo), and all we can see are the loose ends and knots. Sometimes our lives are like that, aren’t they? With knotty problems and loose ends, therefore we have a tendency to question what it is all about. Whereas God looks down and sees the overall picture and watches and encourages us so everything falls into place to complete the picture He has in mind for us. If we endeavour to co-operate with Him we will finally see that “all things” do “work together for good for those that love God, the called according to His purpose” (Romans  8:28).

The book of Acts clearly shows that when we decide to follow Jesus we often find considerable opposition and difficulties, but if we behave the way we are told to in James 1:2, we will find that those problems are just the equivalent of knots on the underside of our “tapestry” of life. A good example of this is where Paul and Silas were going about spreading the “Good News” of Jesus saving grace when they accidentally “trod on the corns” of some  enterprising men who were making money out of a demon possessed girl who was fortune telling for them. Paul and Silas told the demon to leave her and it did (Acts 16:18). Therefore she could not tell fortunes anymore. These men, deprived of their income, were furious and had the two disciples beaten and thrown into a prison where they were placed in stocks. Did this make them depressed? No! they were enthusiastic Christians who knew that Jesus was with them wherever they were and they rejoiced that they were looked on as worthy to suffer for Him. Consequently, “they sang praises to God at midnight and the other prisoners heard them” (Acts 16:25). Of course the Jailer heard them too and he, no doubt, had never before heard of prisoners in their position doing anything but cursing and complaining, certainly never rejoicing. These men didn’t complain and didn’t escape when there was an earthquake and they had a chance to do so. All this caused the Jailer and his family to “believe on the Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 16:31). Therefore he dressed their wounds and fed them in his house. As we look back we see that this was a good outcome; nothing but knots and loose ends to start with but a complete a lovely picture in the finality.

The question arises: does God then allow His children to suffer? The answer is “Yes frequently” but He promises “to be with us in trouble and deliver us and honour us, with long life He will satisfy us and show us His salvation” (Psalm 91:16).

Is this a reasonable action by a loving God? Yes! If He hadn’t allowed Jesus to suffer we would have no forgiveness for our sin. Sometimes it is in the interest of others that we suffer too, and if that should become necessary when we are delivering this “Good News” of Salvation to them, we then need to ask ourselves: what is more important, our comfort or our neighbours Salvation? Soldiers join an army knowing that they may even be killed when defending their countrymen from aggression and the hymn “Onward Christian Soldiers marching as to war” draws a parallel showing how we need to defend our nation against sin by explaining (to those who may not know) how Jesus sacrificial act sets us free from the consequences of sin. Such an action is just a form of obeying Jesus 2^nd commandment to love our neighbour and if that causes problems for us, so be it, and we should then do what James 1:2 says: “Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.”

Best wishes as you think that through,  Tom.