In the United Methodist Church, spring is typically the time that the youth of our congregation become members. At around 12 years of age and older, the youth is invited to become a member. They take months of classes to learn about God, Jesus, the Bible, and the practices and history of our denomination. During this time they are called confirmands.
All their hard work and learning culminates in being confirmed as a member of the church. If they were not previously baptized as an infant, they can be baptized at this time too.
The Prayer Quilt Ministry members prepared a prayer square for each of the confirmands. Here is the one that I made for a young man that is special to our family.
My Prayer Quilt Ministry leader attaches a label on the square commemorating the occasion. She also ties pearl cotton strings around the quilted square that is presented during the service for members of the congregation to come to the altar to offer a prayer for the confirmand and tie a knot in the string to represent their prayer. It is a very special ceremony and I was honored to make a square for our family friend.
The squares can be made any way the quilter chooses. I chose to applique an anchor (very symbolic in our faith) based on a verse, Hebrews 6: 19.
“Jesus is my hope; an anchor for my soul.”
This is a meaningful verse for me and I hope that he will find strength from it throughout his life.
I wish I could have taken a photo of the other prayer squares. They were all unbelievably beautiful.
I used navy anchor printed fabric for the applique as well as the backing. I quilted around the anchor and then randomly quilted in Greek key style around the body of the square loosely following the squares on the white background fabric. Quilting is not my strong suit; I much prefer piecing.
I’ll be back soon with some news of a new ministry we have started. Of course, it involves sewing. Thanks for dropping by. Sorry to have gone so long between posts. I going to try to do better now that summer is here and time is much more relaxed. Please visit again soon.
xo, Faith
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