Burlap Wrapped in Love
“Brothers and sisters, think of what you were…”
—1 Corinthians 1:26 NIV
When did burlap become the darling of DIYers?
2012 had to be the Year of Burlap. I saw burlap wreaths, burlap tote bags, burlap table cloths. I even saw beautiful wedding tables covered in cream silk and roses, done up with burlap runners. Yep, it’s true.
I even saw that Restoration Hardware was selling Burlap pillows. (I confess, I bought one for Brittni; I think they are cute.) Imagine what you would look like after a night with your face pressed into one of them!
“Hey what happened to the side of your face?”
“Nothing…it’s my new burlap pillow.”
At Virtue, we are forever trying to think up gifts for our ladies. As we are always budget-conscious, this can be a challenge.
I laugh about the elaborate ideas we’ve dreamed up that either went afoul or just about killed us in the making. Once we stripped this groovy bark off trees for candle displays. Only later did we discover the gnarly spiders we had carried in the armfuls of bark. They were not too happy to be entombed in our pristine glass containers.
Or what about the bright idea someone had of a 30-page prayer notebook—one page for each day of the month. Sounds doable until you hear that on each page were 10 card slots that had to be stuffed with a different prayer request. Multiply that out by the 575 notebooks we needed for our registered women and you come to almost 225,000 cards needing to be sorted, arranged in order, and stuffed into the proper slots! What were we thinking? (I’ll take the blame for that one.)
So anyway, back to the Year of Burlap. We designed burlap journals. We decided to cut, glue, trim, and “bedazzle” each journal with a handmade burlap flower closure, embellished with a vintage button and sparkly jewel.
The church workroom, parking lot, and everyone in the crew got covered, head to toe, in burlap fibers. The lucky team that glued them looked like their fingers belonged on a Furby.
Ah, so much for working with cheap, easy-to-disintegrate, prone-to-fraying material! How much better it would be to work with something more expensive, prettier, and lasting, like…silk or cashmere?
Apparently God thinks differently.
The apostle Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 1:26–31 (NIV):
“Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: ‘Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.'”
Think of working with burlap as a metaphor of God’s work in our lives. We come to Him roughed up, cheap, and common. And He looks at us and asks, what can I do with them? He takes us, and using the raw material of our lives, makes something beautiful.
I think we should boast in the fact we are “burlap people.” Most of us were not much by human standards, not highly educated, not terribly special, or influential. So if anything good comes of our lives, we can give God the credit! We have an amazing Designer who, 2000 years ago, veiled Himself of glory, and humbled Himself by dying for us on the cross of shame. He was willing to get His hands dirty so he could make us like Him…beautiful!
Paints, brushes, and a 38″ x 16″ canvas were all it took Vincent Van Gogh to create a masterpiece called Fifteen Sunflowers. It sold March 13, 1987, for $39,921,750.
21 comments
Billie | February 20, 2013
Dear Cathe,
I like the way you were talking about designs. There are truly beautiful designs of God's creations if we take the time to look at them. He has given us so much to enjoy everywhere we go. He has turned us into something wonderful. As long as we have Jesus in our hearts, we will be beautiful people. God Bless you and your family.
Joyous in Christ
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Kathryn Austin | February 20, 2013
Thank you for the awesome words of encouragement. At a time of change and uncertainty, they were exactly what I needed. Many thanks and blessings.
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Marcia | February 20, 2013
I I would like to send this to a friend for whom it has meaning.
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Jennifer | February 21, 2013
Beautiful.. thank you! Praise God for changing me every day from what I was, slowly into who He wants me to be! I love You Lord!!!
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Daniela | February 21, 2013
Thank you Cathe for letting the Lord show His beauty in and through you! Yeah, same as burlap was not popular just last year, and expensive too ( I was looking to get some Christmas ornaments for my daughter) so we as God's people are not popular by world's standards and even mocked and despised and persecuted, but precious in God's eyes here and now, but we will be in "the Day of the Lord" transformed in an instant in glorified bodies and will rule and reign with Jesus for a thousand years for the world to see and then forever and ever and ever !!!
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Debbie | February 21, 2013
Good Morning,
Thank you for sending this. When I read My Jesus is willing to get his hands dirty for us, for me, to make us beautiful like Him. That spoke to me and brought tears to my eyes. The Love that Jesus has for us, for me, it's beautiful!
I wanted to thank you for praying for my family. My ex-husband passed away a week ago and My Jesus gave me comfort that heaven is his home. Please pray for my family in this time. You know my ex-husband and I made peace and I give My Jesus all the honor, Glory and Praise for that! I learned that when someone says they forgive, it means to forgive like Jesus did when He was dying on the cross. I thank God that He gave me a beautiful memory of my ex-husband.
Thank you,
Debbie.
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Sherry Pedroza | February 21, 2013
Thank you Jesus for your Love!
He was willing to get His hands dirty so he could make us like Him....beautiful!
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Sueli | February 21, 2013
I was asking myself for the past months - who am I? Who am I for God? This morning after I read this page I realized that certainly I am mot the same person that I was when I accepted Jesus as my Savior 4 years ago, and I won't be the same in the years to come. I thank God for your and Greg's ministry that has helped me all this years to grow in my spiritual life. God bless you and your family.
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6 ESV)
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Rose | February 21, 2013
I will share this. Thank you for the beautiful and encouraging words.
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Linda | February 21, 2013
Such a great analogy! It encourages me, because so often I'd like to be like cashmere and silk, but burlap is more like it. Sometimes I feel like the Lord expects me to be high-end material, but He does not. Sometimes I fray at the edges, shrink with my patience, and my colors run when He is stretching me... but then He comforts me, calms me, and redirects me through His Word and I end up being more like a cotton/polyester blend, practical and useful, that's what He wants...pliable in His hands like the potter and the clay! Blessing sweet Cathe!
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Linda | February 21, 2013
This reminds me of a quote from Max Lucado, "Everyone wants to be a sports car for Jesus when what He needs is a family sedan!"
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Ellie Guerrero | February 21, 2013
Beautiful scripture, wonderful are your thoughts and insight for us. Thank you. I so look forward to your writings. God has surely blessed us. We need to continue to be humble and not boastful of ourselves. Keep it simple and focus on Jesus, Simply Jesus. God Bless You Cathe and Virtue ladies. PS. Thank you ladies for the love and time put into making OUR burlap journals, I keep it in my Virtue bag and carry it with me to all my Virtue Studies <
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Daniela | February 21, 2013
Thank you Cathe, that's the scripture I was looking for to describe my life today. God was willing and I made myself available and He made something beautiful out of my hopeless life that I had before receiving Him as my Lord and Savior. Praise our Father in Heaven. Thank you Jesus for saving us and sending the Holy Spirit to guide our lives.
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Chavah | February 21, 2013
Thank you Cathe for this humbling message!
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Jodi | February 21, 2013
Hi Cathe,
Thank you for sharing the love and concern God puts in your heart for us.
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Kristy | February 21, 2013
That must have been a West Coast trend cause I have never seen such items, but what a perfect analogy. It makes me itchy. Didn't the men of biblical times wear burlap clothing when mourning or when humbling themselves before God? Anyway, what great insight. Thanks Cathe.
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Elizabeth Hansen | February 21, 2013
God made Adam from the soil of the earth that He created. He made Eve from Adam's rib. He made me from a humble farm couple in central Illinois. My grandpa used to buy chicken feed in burlap bags. They were itchy, dusty, but they did the needed job. Like burlap, we too shall return to being part of the earth one day. We too are dusty, itchy, and our bodies do the needed job. I enjoy counted cross-stitch embroidery on linen, a finer kin of burlap and made from flax. I think when I work on my embroidery, I will be reflecting upon your words, Cathe. May Our Lord Jesus be our teacher about getting our hands dirty to help make something beautiful for Him by helping and loving others, as we lift them up to Him. Servant leadership...it's a really beautiful, God-filled thing!
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Lynne Smith | February 21, 2013
How true this is. Thanks for Sharing.
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Penelope | February 21, 2013
Thank you Cathe for sharing that! It certainly reminded me that without Christ what have I to boast about, and that some ideas are best kept as ideas! LOL! Been there and for some reason every now and then I return!
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Brandee W. | February 21, 2013
I still have my 30 page notebook. I need to update it.
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Julie B. | February 22, 2013
Nicely said and a great reminder, we must be thankful each and everyday. With Him in charge, we cannot go wrong. Why does He loves us so much? Look in the world today, and what do you see? God really loves us!
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