New Tapestry

During our church service on Sunday, we were praying for those that have been awakened at the revival in Kentucky. If you haven't heard about the revival happening on Asbury's College Campus - let this be your notice. It is entirely student led and this revival has certainly begun to brew things. New and old are coming together and focusing on Him. The only fruit of this gathering is peace and a tangible presence. We prayed for the revival to spread with those that came from far away and take with them what they received to deposit in their communities. We prayed that minds and hearts be awakened to the presence of God and that people feel the desire never to leave the presence. 

Sometimes while I worship, God will give me pictures like in a movie. I saw a threaded needle standing straight up and down, slow motion spinning, but the thread was running out. Usually the pictures are encouraging in some form. But, a needle running out of thread seems very dramatic and hopeless. If you have ever used a needle & thread and begin to run out of the thread, anxious is the feeling that follows. I usually ask God, "What does that picture mean?" Sometimes I get more to the picture right away and sometimes I have to wait. This time I had to wait. He is so gentle in his responses because he entices us by eagerly leaving a bit more to the story. When we continue to seek and pursue him, more of the picture is revealed. But if we don't return and wait to listen to him, we don't even give him the honor due to "finish his sentence." We end up missing out because we don't hear the rest of the story/word/picture. 

My small community group of friends met last night. We read Romans 12 which was the scripture which sparked the revival at Asbury. In verse 2 of Romans 12 it says, 

"Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect."

At the end of group discussion we worshiped together. During worship, I was reminded of the picture of the needle from earlier on Sunday. There was more to the picture: the thread was not running out...it was connected to a spool of thread. Usually when you look at a spool the thread is coming off the spool and being used. This spool seemed to be collecting the loose thread recirculating it for a new purpose. The picture looked like when you rewind a video. I asked God what that meant? He said to me, 

"I'm renewing a tapestry." 

In that moment I felt like he wanted us to pray and intercede for those of us needing mind renewal - a change up in the way we are thinking. The thread running out shows that eventually our mind, on it's own runs out. But when we let the Holy Spirit be our helper we are given a new spool, and a new thread. The old thread is still there, but because you've let Jesus into your heart a new embroidery, a new mindset, a new creation can be sewn. Our “thread” isn’t running out. He’s making me new. Anyone remember that Gungor song “You make me new, you are making me new. You make beautiful things out of us.” Rethreading us into his designed purpose is what he is doing - if we let him.

So today I pray that our minds be renewed with peace. A peace that surmounts anything earthly we are trying to find peace in today. May the renewal of our minds give us new eyes void of any blurred vision. Given new lenses, let us focus where God would like us to step into our destiny fully providing tools and resources along the way because of the partnership we walk out in obedience and love. May families be given a fresh vision for what a healthy loving family embodies - full of truth and vulnerability with God as a guiding compass. May we all flow in freedom, just as a thread moves through a needle, carefully and intentionally placed by the craftsman when we let him.

These young students of a new generation, bringing revival only because they were obedient to the call are paving the way for a new tapestry. We have access to his presence and his peace, but it really only surfaces because of humility and obedience. Humility that we have a higher being and cannot possibly figure it all out on our own. Obedience to be curious and expectant of what God will be bringing to us... we only need to ask and wait humbling ourselves enough to let him lead the way. May we each feel the call that God has given specifically to each of us, making his tapestry more vibrant and contagious than before. Let our tapestry be so vibrant that those observing be breath taken and contagiously curious that their minds be spun with new conviction and creativity. Let's see the renewed tapestry!