How can guilty feelings and the making of quilts compare? If quilt-making becomes a selfish pursuit, perhaps they can. My own guilt attests to that and, as with any bad habit, it can for others. Read on.
Eternal Perspectives
A Quilt Trip … or a Guilt Trip?
The article title said "Guilt Trip." I thought it said "Quilt Trip." One squiggle of a letter made all the difference. I had to laugh because I know many quilters who have gone on quilt trips (shopping for fabric) and ended up on a guilt trip, having spent more money than they should have. I was one of them during my obsessive quilting days. I knew how hard it was to resist buying the pretty, new, can't-live-without fabrics that were displayed in sample quilts. It didn't take long to fill my shelves and closet with new fabric.
I knew one woman who felt so guilty about her fabric purchases, she told her husband she had bought paper towels, and then threw the evidence down the basement until she had a chance to hide her stash. Women have told me about keeping their newly-bought fabrics in the car trunk until they could sneak them into the house later.
Guilt trips aren't only about quilt trips. They encompass just about every part of our lives. Ask any alcoholic, shopaholic, workaholic, foodaholic, liar, thief, adulterer, or someone prone to gossip. They either will admit to feeling guilty and hiding the evidence, or make excuses for the wrongdoing. When we do wrong, we should feel guilty and be held responsible.
Romans 3:23 says, "…all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." But thanks to the sacrificial death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ, we all can be free of guilt when we confess and turn away from our sins, and accept His forgiveness.
God's Holy Spirit wants to keep our consciences sharp. God would have us ask ourselves daily if we have violated His commands. If so, that's the time to repent, make amends, and change our attitudes and actions when necessary. With the Lord’s help, He will make it possible, for He is “merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in mercy,” as the Psalmist says in Psalm 103:8. The psalm continues: “As the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him.” The entire psalm is worthy of meditation.
Lord, thank You for Your forgiveness through the shed blood of Your Son, Jesus. By Your grace and mercy, deliver us today and every day from the guilt of our sins. Sharpen our consciences through Your Word and Spirit so we can discern right from wrong. Show us when we err and help us develop habits that glorify You instead of ourselves. In Jesus’ name, amen.
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