Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Lavish













On Mother's Day at church, we stood up and each half of the room alternated reading verses from Proverbs 31 to the other half.  You know, that "excellent wife" passage.  I will step out on a limb and assume you haven't had this experience :  a room full of functional orphans from Native America + a wonderful husband reading to you Scripture about the identity and work of a godly woman of Christ.  I wish you could experience it too.  As we read, I couldn't help but think of knitting when we came to the passage about a woman providing warm clothes for her loved ones, and a feeling of joy for the gift of knitting washed over me, yes, right there in the middle of church.  For several years, knitting was purely a means of relief for me, a stress-reliever, a way to see beauty, and a way to have my hands busy while my brain rested.  It was also a joy to turn out garments for my babies and begin to find this online community of knitting friends that challenged my thinking and skill growth in the art.  This has been very good.  But over the past several months I have also felt a stirring to use my knitting time to bless others.   Don't for a second think I believe there is anything at all wrong with knitting for oneself or knitting pure frivolity - there is a deep joy in creating just to create because it makes you happy and you were made for it.  However, it struck me that the extravagance of being generous with my time is important.  To give away hours of time is suddenly this great joyous way to richly love someone whether they understand the value of the gift or not. Lavish: a delicious word to describe the way I want to love everyone who comes into my life because I myself have been loved so lavishly.

This week I test knit some baby socks for my friend Lisa. What a sweet pattern!  It will be released very soon so I will come back and link to this post once it is!   Millie's Kiddy Vertebrae is on the needles as well.  And oh, my, I finished my SweetiePie ABC's cross-stitch sampler and am in love.  As soon as we begin our new budget I'm hoping to get the materials to frame it so I can that baby up on the wall.  

Reading is another rediscovered gift in my world, and I'm entranced by 100 Cupboards by N.D. Wilson.  I was reading at the coffee shop the other day (ah, divine!) and a friend came in and I was so absorbed in the story that I jumped when she called my name to say hello.  I am also really enjoying Raymie Nightingale by Kate DiCamillo although so far I think I prefer her other recent book that I read a few months ago, Flora and Ulyssesbut I am not finished yet and reserve the right to change my mind. The book The Pastor's Wife by Sabina Wurmbrand is a challenging and amazing thing to read but only in small sections as it is a book about the life of Christians being persecuted in the Soviet Union.  

I'm listening to The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas on the CraftLit podcast (which is going to take awhile) and Wuthering Heights which I got on Audible.  Books books books! 

I am joining in with the Yarn Along hosted by Ginny which I look forward to every Wednesday.  Are you yarning along?  

7 comments:

  1. My Alex read the 100 Cupboard series and loved it.
    I adore your photos, but the top one and the one of you with your babies are my favorites!

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  2. Your cross stitch is just adorable!

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  3. I love the picture of you with your darlings. It's so sweet! Love those baby socks. I knit a pair for her also - what a fun quick knit! Enjoy your week.

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  4. Love the first photo!
    And you have strawberries already!! We still have snow on the ground here and there...
    I have 100 cupboards on my to read list.

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  5. Such dear little baby boots. <3

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  6. Such dear little baby boots. <3

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  7. I love the photo of you and your girls!! Those little socks look sweet and adorable :)

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