God the Seamstress

Some time ago I gave a funeral message for a member of my congregation. She was well known as a seamstress par excellence, sewing innumerable wedding dresses. So in my funeral message I encouraged the family to use their memory of her work as a seamstress to be reminded of the Gospel which saved her, and all those who are clothed in Christ’s garments of salvation.

After all God does indeed know a bit about sewing and clothing. In fact, on that dark day when his perfect creation was sliced open by sin, God sewed his first outfits and gave them to Adam and Eve to cover their nakedness; something they had not be aware of before. Their sin caused them to sense their need for clothing and their crude fig leaves were replaced with God’s garments.

Ever since Adam and Eve’s plunge into sin, mankind has had a sense of nakedness and the need to be clothed. This is a universal result of sin. Even people who live in the remote tropics and seemingly have no need for clothing still wear something without which they would feel, well…naked.

As a result of this universal feeling of nakedness, God has been a great seamstress who is clothing his family. Clothing is a symbol of God’s salvation and this can be seen even in the great sin sacrifice on the Day of Atonement. On this, the most holy day of the Jewish calendar, the High Priest would take off his priestly garments, the robe, the ephod and the breast plate, and was instructed to wear only the white linen tunic woven of one piece of fine fabric. Then in this white linen garment he was allowed to meet with God in the Holy of Holies as he sprinkled the sacrificial blood on the ark.

You know there was somebody else who wore a fine white linen tunic. He too was a High Priest, though unrecognized as one until his sacrifice was finally understood. The Apostle John gives us the story:

When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom.
"Let's not tear it," they said to one another. "Let's decide by lot who will get it." This happened that the scripture might be fulfilled which said, "They divided my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing.”

I have always wondered why Jesus would wear something that was so fine the Roman soldiers did not want to rip it up. I like imagining Jesus as the funky itinerant teacher dressed in something from Salvation Army. But under it all he wore a fine white linen tunic of the sort the High Priest would wear into the Holy of Holies. In the case of Christ though, it was stripped from him in order that he would take our sin, shame and nakedness on the cross, so that we in turn could be clothed in his righteousness. He was the only one who could stand before God naked and unashamed. He became unclothed, so that we could become clothed with the finest of wedding garments.

In this life we still feel a bit naked and exposed. Death is one of the things that can do this. Death reminds us just how feeble and frail we are no matter what we might be wearing. You cannot dress up death. Our own sense of nakedness simply moves us to find the greatest seamstress, our Father, who gives us the festal garments of salvation.

It is God who has created us for this very purpose, for this very wedding feast. And it is with confidence that we look forward to this feast for in Christ we will not be found naked but clothed in the white garments of righteousness.

The Gift of Gardens

When you start reading the Bible it does not take very long until God makes a garden and tells Adam and Eve to starting tending it. Even before God had placed a curse on the ground they were working the soil. Maybe, that is why some still think that gardening is an divine vocation.

I know that I enjoy gardening along with a growing number of people. There might even be more people who would enjoy getting dirt under their fingernails if they only had a place to do that. So with this in mind, Trinity Church started a community garden on our property. It is in a lovely spot across a small creek from the church building in large section of green grass and trees. The garden, called "Seeds of Friendship Community Garden", has 16 plots which are 12 feet by 16 feet. People from our neighborhood and some folks from our church have been watching with joy the phenomenal growth in our little green space.

We have watched the radishes, carrots, potatoes, tomatoes, cabbage, watermelon, onions, peas and a cornucopia of other fruits and vegetables go crazy with life. We have also combined forces in defending our produce from the various insects that would love to consume it before we get a chance to. We have experimented with some very different organic pest controls in an effort to protect our produce.

We even added the incentive of a tallest sunflower contest. We have some beauties that must be over 10 feet tall!

I have been picking some of my produce and I thought I would just show you what can be done with just a little space and a little work. I love to eat the peas, the great potatoes and especially the small long white onions.

Tending a garden is a wonderful way to provide some wholesome food for your family and relax and enjoy the beauty and awesome mystery that God has placed in the tiniest seeds that grow to be sunflowers or friendships.

Please, make a garden to tend and enjoy the life that it brings to you.