Blessed be the Tie That Binds

Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother. Mark 3:35

On our last day at St. Paul Lutheran 20 years ago, the church ladies gifted us with two quilts as they sent us to seminary. We still have those quilts today. They come out to warm and comfort our overnight guests. The quilts were a special gift, stitched with love, that tell part of our family story. They bring memories of the special people of St. Paul’s. Many feelings are attached to the quilt squares like excitement, gratitude, apprehension, and sadness mixed with the joy all wrapped up in love. They now remind us of our loved ones who visit from afar. The quilts tie together our past, present, and future lives and our family, friends, and guests near and far.

Jesus says we are tied together in the bond of love by the Holy Spirit in special ways near and far, in our sameness and in our difference, in our agreement and in our disagreement. In Jesus family is expanded to include all who love him and love others. Love is the tie that binds together the past, present, and future of our lives and everything that happens in between has meaning.

A beautiful poem by Becky Hemsley stitches it all together:

Your life is like a quilt
And everybody weaves their share
Some weave huge great tapestries
And some weave tiny squares

Some squares bring you laughter
And some will bring you tears
Some are stitched and sewn by those
Who are no longer here

In places there are threads
From people choosing not to stay
And every time you touch these threads
It brings back all the pain

But every little thread
That weaves its joy and pain and fun
Has stitched a quilt together
Of the person you’ve become

And every little tiny part
Has slowly taught you how
To weave your contribution
Into the blanket you have now

So I know there are squares that comfort you
And some that you dislike
But without them all you wouldn’t have
This patchwork of your life

One in Christ, Pastor Andrea