Scripture for Today:  Col. 2:2  “that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery; that is, Christ Himself.”

My daughter, sister and Mother all love to knit.  For whatever reason, the gene did not get passed to me.  This scarf was made by my daughter as a gift for a friend and I have also been a happy recipient.  It has been found that knitting provides the health benefits of lowered stress.  Somehow, the rhythmic and repetitive action has a calming affect.

Knitting has enjoyed a real comeback.  One can find lots of websites and knitting clubs today.  But I was surprised to learn how ancient an art it is.  The earliest example is a pair of cotton socks with a stranded knit color pattern found in Egypt.  It dates back to the end of the first millennium AD!  What surprised me further was to discover that knitting used to be a male-only occupation!

In our verse for today Paul prays that the believers in Colossae will be encouraged by having their hearts knit together in love.  What a beautiful image!  Just as those stitches cannot stand alone, so too we need each other.  Regardless of the kind of stitch used they all have one thing in common; one stitch is looped into the next.  Unfortunately, stitches can be dropped.  If a loop of yarn accidentally falls off the needle, the dropped stitch can cause the knitting to unravel.  One needs to go back and pick up that dropped stitch.

God’s love does bind us together.  We are stronger and more beautiful when interconnected.  Thank you, Lord, for the encouragement that comes from spending time with other believers!