. . He started it!

Psalm 62:5-8  Find rest, o my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from Him.
                      He alone is my rock and my salvation; 
                      He is my fortress, i will not be shaken.
                      My salvation and my honor depend on God,
                      He is my mighty rock, my refuge.
                      Trust in Him at all times, o people;
                      pour out your heart to Him,
                      for God is our refuge.

Revelation 1:8 "I am the Alpha and the Omega" say the Lord God,
                      "Who is, and Who was, and Who is to come, the Almighty."

I Peter 2:9  But you are a chosen people,
                          a royal priesthood, a holy nation,
                                     a people belonging to God, that you may declare
                         the praises of Him who called you out of darkness
                  into His wonderful light. 

James 1:17 - Every good and perfect gift is from above,
                    coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights,
                    Who does not change like shifting shadows. 
                    He chose to give us birth through the Word of Truth,
                    that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all He created.

Point to Ponder:  From the very beginning of time, God has given me blessings and ordered my day .... not so that i'd always have prizes to open BUT so that i would always be aware of Him..... it's not about the Gift ... but about the GIVER!   Which is exactly how i feel about the things i knit .... perhaps the sleeves were too tight on her sweater ... but really? ... i was just trying to show her, in stitches, how much she means to me!

those first socks i shared with you? perhaps a bit rough compared to what others may have knitted, but none the less, i wanted to say "you means the world to me" .... that cotton washcloth was a reminder that i'm always thinking of you ...... so maybe as i go through today and hit a rough patch that would appear to not be knitted as 'securely'  or as 'pretty' as i would have hoped, i will learn to look to the Giver of Good Gifts, and be reminded that His motive is Pure Love ... the Gift of His Presence that constantly abides with me regardless of how the external packaging may be!   (granted, i DO question why He opted to use such 'bulky' yarn when He knit certain parts of me together .....  but overall, i have come to realize that I am His favorite color!  I am His favorite gift!  I Am HIS - and He loves me just the way I am!)

you say poTAYdo, i say poTOTo .....

have you ever been told that "you're not doing it the right way" when it comes to how you knit?  perhaps you hold the yarn in your Left hand and you 'pick' the yarn as you knit, thus making you  a Continental knitter versus someone who holds the yarn in their right hand and 'throws' the yarn, which is indicative of an English knitter.  Both have their merits and clearly personal preferences exist everywhere, but the bottom line is that it boils down to what feel right for you and achieves a uniform stitch.



There are multiple ways to increase your stitch count while your knitting ... there is the option to Make 1 by knitting into the front AND the back of the same stitch, or you can simply us a backward loop to add a stitch (which is good for buttonhole rows).  you can pick up the loop on the row below to add an additional stitch or even use the horizontal bar between stitches as the base for creating another stitch.  Each has their own merits and each has it's own pitfalls as far as degree of difficulty or the "hole" that may be left when it's all said and done.  Decreases - well there's more than one way to accomplish those as well.  Life isn't always a Knit 2 together scenario!   (who knew!)    you may find that a SSK - slip, slip, knit - will provide a more appropriate and discreet slant in  your knitting....  so many choices, so many options .... and all are "right" at certain times and places!

i have learned that there are very few absolutes when it comes to knitting other than making sure the stitch is correctly and consistently situated on the needle.  other than that, it really does come down to what feel right to you ... what will result in you calling your knitting adventure 'FUN' and not frustrating!  there really are a growing number of things in life now that provide an incredible range of interpretation, whether it be styles of knitting or styles of fashion, menus of food or playlists of music, choices for television viewing or volumes of reading .... and yet, there is one thing that i have learned is non-negotiable: The Love of God! 

"I (Jesus) have loved you with an everlasting love; 
  I (Jesus) have drawn you with loving kindness."  
[not really seeing any 'variation' options in His promise as He stated here in Jeremiah 31:3]

In Your unfailing love You will lead the people You have redeemed.
In Your strength You will guide them to Your holy dwelling.
[from those early days in Exodus until this very morning, His love continues to lead me .. i am one of His redeemed; one of His children who He guides/knits and calls to Himself].

Hebrews 13: 8 states it perfectly:  Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever! 
not really any room for interpretation ... now .. is there?

It doesn't matter to Him which style i choose when i knit as long as i know that i know that i know that I am His child ... a child of the King.  Loved and adored despite my past.  Period. The End!

who's got the remote?

if my husband is home .... the tv is on.  FACT!  and 9 times out of 10 he is sitting and watching the tv.  he's a nite owl so he watches tv, or dvds, or reruns, or infomercials .... something is ALWAYS playing for him to watch.  and as life would have it, i still don't have quite the same level of "appreciation" for that many opportunites to sit in front of a box and watch it.  Thus . . . i learned . . . to knit!

now -  granted, there are times when it's nice to get lost in the suspence of an intriging movie ... or sit and cry like a girl at a great chick-flick ... laughing an at old comedy from my childhood or whistling with andy griffith while they are walking to go fishing .....  and of course ... ANYTHING HGTV counts as Worthy Time investments .....  but all the rest of the Viewing Grid becomes a measure for my knitting projects.  you know what i mean:  if it's a new movie that i want to watch and haven't seen before then i may choose some basic yarn and just sit and knit a scarf that requires NO thinking and NO pattern reading!  if it's a rerun of a sitcom then i might work on a simple sweater project where i a can make notes on the rows i've completed, not get too lost in the instructions and still follow the premise of the show ALL at the same time.   but then, there are those tv shows (usually sports) that allow me hours to work on lace ... i can read the chart, maintain my place in the pattern AND on my needles and nod in approval or cheer on demand when the time is appropriate! 

i have learned the hard way that the intricacies of lace require a commitment of time and focus ... AND attention to detail ... i have to THINK ... i have to CONCENTRATE .... and i have to have the quiet option with no distractions in order to make things work.  and it would appear that my daily walk with the Lord shadows this very process as well.  Some of the journey is filled with "sweater knitting" as i sit at work and greet people that walk through the front doors of our school.  Answering the phones, greeting the guests are, for the most part, second nature but leave room for me to be aware of God's Presence without clinging to Him for reassurance.  He has equipped me for those moments and i can rest in them.  

However there are THOSE times when the day is anything BUT comfortable .... you've had them:  if it CAN go wrong ,,, it WILL .... time and time and time again!  [all within 30 minutes it seems like!] ... and at THOSE moments i find myself wanting to run for some 'scarf knitting' where i just go through the motions but don't really have to think .... however .... the Truth of the matter is that in the midst of the worst of times God is calling me to knit 'lace' with Him!  To focus solely on His design and get lost in His Calming demeanor rather than being engulfed by the turbulence and outer conflicts ..... 

Somehow chaos and lace don't mix .. and yet ... knowing that when i run to Him, Jesus brings order to each row of lace that He is knitting in my day .... His lace is filled with increases and decreases, yarn overs and knit 2 togethers ... at times there is simple knitting and purling ... and then He adorns the row with a variation on His theme .... Trust and Obey .... Knit and Purl .... grab the remote, Change the channel and see what is showing on His Network!

Humble yourselves, therefore,
   under God's mighty hand,
     that He may lift you up
             in due time.
                      
                            Cast all your anxiety on Him 
                                   for He cares for you.
                                         I Peter 5:6-7

time for Fray Check

are you a member of Ravelry yet?  please tell me that you've taken the 10 seconds it requires to join this amazing website that is FILLED to overflowing with patterns and opinions and forums and funnies and just about anything in between for the the knitter (and even the crocheter!).  this site contains options for recording and documenting your personal collection of yarn, books, projects started, frogged AND finished ...  it affords you the option of leaving a trail for others to see ... or simply the ability to loose yourself in the dreams and plans of projects to come!

many days (and nites) i find myself pouring over the patterns - which are very distinctly categorized in order to optimize your search time.  you can sort by pattern type, type of yarn used, ease in construction, even patterns WITH pictures versus those without.   and i have found that if and when an option presents itself withOUT a picture i just move on to the next one.  Clearly, my knitting 'faith' is lacking ... i'm a Big Picture kind of knitter who still enjoys the inspiration (or crutch) of what my end result is supposed to look like!

if i'm not careful i sometimes find myself making these same demands of the Lord when it comes to my own life and living each day.  in my mind i think it would be better if He'd lay things out early in the morning so that i could see what was waiting - then i would develop my own plan for how to handle things and get on with it ... or whine about it if i didn't like it .... or just avoid it if it appeared to hard [despite the fact that He had intentions for making it work to my good] ..... clearly such a strategy wouldn't be all that advantageous to me if He left me in charge! 

on paper it would appear that i really don't have any "pictures" to go by and that i walk blindly through each moment ... each stitich of the day.  however, NOTHING could be FARTHER from the TRUTH!   Every day is filled with the Creative Memories of Who He Is, candid snapshots of the realities of reaching for His Hand and resting in His ability to lead and guide.  Choosing to follow Him provides me with access to a heavenly "Ravelry" site where i can peek into the albums of those who have already lived and knitted according to His Master Pattern .... their lives and stories captured and documented as their hearts were knit together with His.  Quite simply:  We walk by faith, not by sight   [2 Cor. 5:7]

i firmly believe that the Lord knows and understands our weakness and lack of faith despite all the instrutions He has left us in His Word, and that is why we also have so many physical, visible, touchable demonstrations of His love and consistency when we look back on the projects He has finished in our own lives as well as those of others.  Imitation is the highest form of  flattery regardless of whether it's wanting to knit a scarf using the same yarn and pattern as another knitter ... or when it's relinquishing my own desires in order to be Knit by Him because I have seen what He has done or is doing in someone else's life.  Resting in the reality of His Presence because of the Light He shines .... enables me to Knit by Faith and NOT by site .... and His works always turn out well!  The Hall of Faith as recorded in Hebrews 11 could be inspiration enough ... but He has graciously filled 1,651 pages [according to the Bible Scrapbook that He has left for me to use this morning] with example and inspirations and proven documentation of what He will accomplish when i yeild to His workmanship and design for the yarn of my life.   He guarantees a perfect fit when it's all said and done!

I am the Light of the world. 

Whoever follows Me with never walk in darkness,

but will have the light of life.

John 8:12

following His plans guarantees no frays or ravels - no loose threads to threaten my progress - when it's all said and done, the tails of each finished day will be woven into place, and i will reflect the sweet fellowship and  faithful design that has resulted from resting on the capable and skillful needles of my Creator and Master Designer.

Simple Pleasures

ever had one of THOSE days when all it would take to make it better was to just sit and HOLD your yarn?  when things seemed to be more than just a bit awry, perceptions of progress were viewed as going backwards rather than the forward hopes and plans originally intended? if you had to sum up your day the phrase 'what a waste!' [complete with eye roll] would come to mind?  please, oh please, just let me sit and knit and then everything would be okay!  do you know what i'm talking about?

it's at 'these' very moments when returning to the basics of it all seems to be the perfect solution, the most desirable of tasks . . to make the connection again with a ball of string and some needles and be able to recall the restoration of 'level' when thinking back on what happens when you just sit and knit!  one of my all time favorite quotes says

"In the rhythm of the needles there is music for the soul!"

and i have learned, time and again, just how perfect that fits into my life .... into my day .... and often into the very moment of whatever is going on around me - to recall the Joy of the task, the Contentment of the investment, the Connection in single stitches of progress.  Knots are inevitable in my every day AND my skeins of yarn .... but nothing can deter the simple pleasure, or melody, of this overall process.

yesterday i was floored by a 5th grader who asked me if i could explain to him what 86 BC meant.  when i said that BC talked about the years before Christ was born he very innocently looked up at me and said "What's Christ?".  I honestly stood there and thought my heart was going to stop because i don't know that i've ever encountered someone without ANY clue of who the Lord was.  there are plenty of people around me who choose NOT to believe ... but to meet someone this up-close and personal who didn't even know that Jesus was a CHOICE ???? !!!!!!   OH MY SOUL!!!!   My heart broke and all i could do is pray that God would guide my ever word as i seized the innocence of that moment to explain the plan of salvation with the holidays of Christmas and Easter .... he replied "oh, isn't that one of the stories in the Bible?  My mom said she'd get me a Bible!"   WHAT?????    i've got Bibles laying all over my house and here before me stands a child, who represents an entire family, without a single copy of His Word??  Oh Virginia Lynn .....  the basics!  the bascis!  no need for long dissertations of the Holiness of the Diety, and the Vengence of an Angry God and the Grace and Mercy of the Post Millenial Kingdom ....   this child needed the simple "Sit and Knit" basics of Who God is and how Jesus wants to live in his heart!

To describe my day as FANTASTIC would be a bit on the sarcastic side most days - - finding the Joy in each moment comes for seeking Him withIN each moment - He shows me the "sit and knit" spots along the way, and this helps to put things in perspective so that when i do encounter the Knots .. or the hard questions that take me by surprize ... i immediately know WHO to run to ... Who can undo the Knots and get the stitches of my day back on His needles!  I know that i can run to my Father with arms outstretched and plead "Fix it Father!" and He will gently take the mangled mess of my day and patiently put things back in their proper place ..... How i long to be able to sing "I've got the Joy, Joy, Joy, Joy down in my heart!  Down in my heart to stay" as He knits me together, day by day .... hearing Him hum the chorus along side me as He sits and knits my heart to His!  (wonder if He grins when He gets to just hold the yarn of my life without me squirming and wiggling and trying to slip off His needles? ! ..... or if His shoulders relax and he says to Himself  "aahhh ... I remember:  knitting IS fun?)  .... just curious ...........

My Daily Knitting Companion



amazon.com

it was family weekend this past weekend at union university ... and we had a wonderful time with rachael.  we enjoyed spending time with her and seeing her 'in her element' with friends - hearing them giggle, watching them talk about classes and sorority and church and life in general.  we shared an afternoon of ballgames; we spent time shopping and sewing, we had the privilege of attending church with her and worshipping together.  it was a great family weekend and a reminder of just how quickly life changes.  seems like just yesterday she was just beginning school and it would be forEVER before i would have to think about her leaving ......
it also seems like eons ago when i 1st learned to knit in the back of the car on a trip home for christmas.  all i wanted to learn to do was knit a scarf.  that's all!  didn't really know what that meant per se, i just wanted to knit a scarf and make gifts for my friends and family .... just simple, knitted scarves.  and looking back, i do believe my 'want to' has continued to grow with each new thing i've learned and my confidence has grown - - in addition to my stash!  ;)

it started with a simple knit stitch ... and then row upon row the memory of the motion began to stick in my head AND in my fingers and the tension eased from my shoulders and actually laid rather nicely within my knitting. before long i was purling ... on purpose!  awkward at first, but i had learned that practice was the key and stitch by stitch i soon learned this next step in the progression of knitting. once the basics were grasped (though there were/are still holes and 'issues' along the way), i soon became to view yarn in a more adventuresome way .... dreaming of possibilities and actually believing that they COULD happen. before long i was pouring over patterns, adding additional needles to my collection, searching the internet for inspiration .... and making lists of projects that i wanted to do ....   all because i learned the basic knit stitch.

as a believer i have found the very same correlation of events ..... my confession of faith when i was a senior in high school was the culmination of years of knowing ABOUT the Lord but never genuinely and publicly surrendering to Him. the initial introduction was so very liberating, to realize my eternity was now secure in  Him and just being able to relax in that confidence was amazing.  however, such knowledge had now instilled a new hunger and drive for wanting to know more ... for studying His Word, for sharing with His Children, for spending more time with Him in order to get to Know Him!  How was/is that possible?  Through the precious gift of His Holy Spirit, Who has served as the Companion - Counselor - Guide with each new day i'm given.  Realizing that i am called to serve, and not just sit, requires a consistent investment and surrender to seek and find and apply the things that i am taught each day .... each minute ..... with every stitch that He is designing for me.

"The Knitter's Companion" by Vicki Square is a neat little spiral-bound book that you can drop into your kntting bag and have on hand for any knitting emergency or just generic question that may arise while you are knitting.  I have found that the gift of the Holy Spirit is even MORE of a Companion that any book i've tucked in my knitting bag.  He is immediately there ... just waiting to lend help, to intercede, to gently (or firmly) guide as my will surrenders or my stubborness flairs up!   Yet it all begins with that 1st initial knit stitch of confessing your sins before the Lord and accepting His precious and priceless gift of salvation ....

"Now I am going to Him who sent Me .... But I tell you the truth:  it is for your good that I am going away.  Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. . .  when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all truth.  He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and He will tell you what is yet to come.  He will bring glory to Me by taking from what is Mine and making it known to you.  All that belongs to the Father is Mine.  That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is Mine and make it known to you.              John 16:5-15

gives new meaning and insight into the gift of My Knitting Daily Companion!

Garter Stitch Love

Red Hot Sweater Jacket,
a free Lion Brand Yarn pattern

do you remember those first early days when knitting was new and adventuresome ... sometimes it seemed incredibly frustrating as your fingers fumbled around with the yarn ... my attempts at coordination often left me feeling more like a 4 year old rather than a 40 year old!  BUT there was something "there" that continued to feed my creative (and competitive) side ... i was determined that i was going to learn to knit ... and it was going to be FUN ... dad gum it!

i'm afraid i've grown quite opinionated over the years about my knitting 'progress' and have often found myself judging my very own progress based on "what" i am knitting at the moment.  case in point:  unless the project i am working on now is harder/more complicated/takes longer than the one previously, then it's not really a big 'deal' and i'm not really learning much ....  now, i didn't say that my ideas were good ones .... or even smart ones ... i'm just saying that my ignorance is often more prevalent than even i realize at times!

the new kohl's opened this week and i actually paid money for a swing style sweater that is knit ... and it's all in  .............  GARTER STITCH.  yep!  that's right .... i paid for a garter stitch garment ... on purpose .... (but it WAS on sale and i did have an additional 30% off!) .....  and i LOVE it!  it has made me stop and realize just how far i've come from my early days of garter stitch scarves where i felt like it took 6 years just to knit one scarf .... or those amazing garter stitch washcloths, whose monotony has actually become rather therapeutic in nature ..... oh my soul!  i need for it to be cooler so i can wear my new sweater ... with pride .. and be inspired by the basic and simple knit stitch.  Period.  The End ......

as i stood and admired the 'craftsmanship' of this knitted (by machine no doubt) garment my heart was pricked, actually, to think about another first love of mine .....  i can still remember the day that the Lord called me as an 18 year old senior in high school ... i remember how compelling the conviction of that moment was, i remember the urgency of coming and confessing and seeking forgiveness and longing for restoration from Him,  i remember waking early with a renewed sense of wanting to learn EVERYTHING about Him because i was so in love with Him .... His Word took on a new meaning, quiet times were precious though i fumbled around in some awkward moments when i approached Him..... everything....  EVERYTHING seemed to be heightened ... time with Him, time with His children, time in His Word, time in His Presence ....  really rather simple ..... basic knit stitch investments .... i guess i could say those early days were Garter Stitch Love ....

and i'm afraid i'm now so busy 'doing' in order to demonstrate my love that if i'm honest i've lost some of that zeal ... and luster .... and honest innocence in pursuing Him and Him alone.  Who said that the Garter Stitch was a bad thing (i know, i know ... i actually am guilty of that mindset.) 

Matthew 11:28-29 simply says:
"Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest!

Take My yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart,

and you will find rest for your souls.  For My yoke is easy and my burden is light."   

SO ........ Here's the knitting lesson that the Lord has shared with me today:

"Hey Ginger, come sit and knit over here with Me when you are too tired or worried and don't think you want to go any further, and I promise you that I will teach you, I will GIVE you rest!  Here! ... Wear my Garter Stitch Sweater/yoke and Watch and Learn from Me:  See!  I AM Gentle and Humble - really very basic!  With this mindset Ginger, you too will find the rest and fulfillment you are seeking in everything and from everyone but from Me... and,  when you do turn to Me you will recall those "1st love moments" when you relinquished control and allowed Me knit your early days - - remember?  Knitting is supposed to be "FUN" - - and it was as you submitted to My design for the yarn and needles of your every day. Oh!  and one more thing:  My Garter Stitch yoke fits perfectly . . and you look so pretty when you stand tall and allow your shoulders to relax and reflect your trust in Me!"    Love, Your Father!