Rags To Riches

Denim.....gotta say again how much I like it.....so comfortable, so versatile, so full of character and variety, and so practical.  And who doesn't appreciate a pair of good-fitting jeans?  But when the jeans wear out and they're a bit too rugged to pass on, with stains or rips in the wrong places, I like to collect and recycle them..... as I have done with this fringy throw quilt.

Up-cycling junky jeans reminds me of the way that God through Messiah has reached down to save and transform me.  Like old jeans that could have been tossed into the garbage bin, the Creator found a way to redeem and rescue his beloved, fallen people, turning them from the eternal punishment that their sins deserved, to the new life that he offers through his spirit.  Like parables, my denim projects tell stories with heavenly meanings.

Denim blues are so mesmerizing to me.  Call me crazy, I don't care, but I feel like my eyes get sucked in and enraptured by the beauty of this cool and soothing color.  I especially love the brightness of the old, worn, faded squares because of how beautifully their highlights contrast with the richer, sturdier, darker blues.....put that concept into a parable, and tell me if it doesn't sound like an encouraging thought!  

I discovered something amazing about the color blue as I was working on my quilt.  Blue is the color of royalty.  God used a blue cloth as the final covering over the Ark of the Covenant (Numbers 4:6) to designate his authority as the ark led the children of Israel through the wilderness.  All the other various articles from the Tabernacle that followed in procession were covered on the outside with animal skins, but the ark of God stood apart.....covered in blue!  The Ark of the Testimony was the earthly footstool of God Almighty.  It represented the presence of the King of Kings among his people. So maybe I'm not so crazy after all!  God chose blue to represent his presence.....and I love it!

Known as a rag quilt or a fringe quilt, this recently finished project had originally attracted me because of the beautifully textured fringy edges.  It offered one more unique way to use the denim fabric that I had collected.  One side has fringes, and on that side I included seams on some of the squares for more interest and texture. The other side of the quilt is smooth.

Another fascinating fact I learned while working on my fringe quilt, was that the men of Israel were commanded to wear fringes or tassels on the corners of their garments (Numbers 15:38,39).  These, they were commanded to attach with a blue thread.  The blue thread linked the Israelites to the King of Kings.  The color of divine royalty visually reminded them that God had linked them to himself.....giving them the privilege and the responsibility of representing the Lord of Lords.  The fringes helped them to remember and to obey all the Lord's commandments. 

Zechariah 8:23 prophesies about a day in which ten men (the number of leaders that quantifies a formal congregation), will grab the corner of the garment of a Jew saying, "Let's go with you for we have heard that God is with you."  This is speaking of a time in which Gentile believers attach themselves to the Messiah (a Jew),  and take hold of the commandments by taking hold of him.  When we love what God loves and hate what he hates, when we keep the Lord's commandments, it's like we are grabbing onto the fringes and attaching ourselves to our Jewish Messiah. 

In the construction of the quilt, each square was double layered, to create a front and a back for the quilt.  To hold the layers together, I sewed X's from corner to corner on each square.  Even that detail took on meaning for me as I continued to study and learn about the Hebrew alphabet.  In the Paleo-Hebrew alephbet , the last letter, tav, had as its letter picture, an X or a cross - a symbol or sign of "covenant".   Combined with the first letter, the aleph, meaning "strength", aleph-tav literally means, "strength of the covenant".  This is what Yeshua was actually declaring about himself when we read, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last."  

On Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, I sat on the patio under my just-finished quilt, reflecting on my need for a Savor, knowing that as Isaiah 64:6 puts it, "all our righteousness are as filthy rags" to God.  I thanked my Savior, Yeshua, for covering my sins with his precious blood, for fulfilling all of the laws' demands and for being the strength of the covenant......for me.  I have found my covering.....under the wings of Yeshua, my Kinsman-Redeemer, in whom I take refuge.  Through him, my stains have been washed away, and I can stand before the throne as an unblemished, pure and holy bride, dressed in a radiant robe of righteousness.  Thanks be to God for the eternal riches that he has so graciously bestowed upon me!

  

Nothing in my hand I bring,
Simply to the cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress;
Helpless look to Thee for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly;
Wash me, Savior, or I die.

Interested in a tutorial?  For the one that I followed, you can look here:  http://www.thiscrazyblessedlife.com/2011/08/housewife-in-town-denim-rag-quilt.html

Hmmm.....maybe I'll be able to use the lint for another project!