Creative Lent: Collections and Assemblies

We've been thinking about creative activities that we can do for Lent.  Today, all sorts of things you can put together, often out of scraps that you have at home.

You could take small scraps of cloth and make octagons.  And then you could sew them together.

Or maybe you'd like to sew long strips together, to experience the joy of sewing a long seam:

As you sew pieces together, reflect on how the Kingdom of God is like a quilt, composed of many scraps of cloth, turned into something both beautiful and functional.

Here's something else you can do with cloth, if you've got old chair frames that need new seats:

Wrap strips around the chair going the same direction, and tie each strip so that it's tight.  Push each new strip against the accumulating strips as you go.  Knot them to the frame at either end.

Then, much the same way you likely wove pot holders on a loom as a child, weave strips over and under going the other direction.  Again, push the woven strips tight against each other.  Knot them to the frame at either end.

As you weave, admire the way that the colors go together.  Admire the way that you can take rags and a chair frame and transform them into functional furniture.  Think about how God always provides a seat, even if the bottom falls out from under you.

Maybe you want to capture the sound of the wind, so that each time you hear your wind chimes, you'll think of John 3:8:  "The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."

If you make wind chimes from items strung on yarn or string, just remember that they need to hit each other to make sound.  The first time I made a wind chime, I forgot, so mine isn't as melodious.  Even though the wind chimes pictured look like they're made of predominantly pottery, old pieces of hardware make great wind chimes.  You've been wondering what to do with all those old keys that no longer open any lock!

Welcome March, which has a reputation for being a windy month, with a kite you've made yourself.  As you watch your kite blow in the breeze, think about how God keeps you tethered, no matter what winds blow your way.