The Principle of Heavenly Rank

 "Every man in his own order: Christ the first-fruits; afterward they that are Christ's."  1 Corinthians 15:23.

       The influence of caste would seem to be ineradicable. We are told that God has leveled down all men in a common condemnation; yet here we read "every man shall rise in his own order." Why not? If you were to reduce all men to one level to-day, they would be quite unequal to-morrow; the best men would come to the front in a few hours. "But," you say, "I expected better things of heaven. I thought in the other world we should be done with all this cutting and carving, this separation of masses and classes, this raising of barriers between man and man. How it disappoints me to hear that a man has to keep his own order! "Nay but, my brother, "what is the order? Who are those that are to stand in front of the throne? It is the men of sacrifice - the men who have most power to hurst the barriers. Christ is ''the first-fruits" because Christ has gone deepest down. Then come ''they that are Christ's " - they that have washed their robes in the blood of self-forgetfulness. Behind them are the rank and file - those who are still unfit for service, who themselves need to be served. These are the invalids of the camp; they require to be waited upon; they go not forth to battle against sin and Satan. In the present world they would have been called the people of means, people of independence, people who keep attendants; but in the coming world the attendants themselves are to have the first room.

       Prepare me for my heavenly rank, O Lord! Thou hast said that the least shall be greatest in Thy Kingdom; prepare me for my coming high position. I speak of preparing for death; that is an easy thing; I have only to practice torpor. But the hard thing is to practice for that which makes heavenly greatness. I could easily make ready for earthly greatness; I should learn to domineer in a week. But to  serve, to help, to minister, to perform menial offices, to retire into the shade that another's light may shine - that needs a long education. I have often wondered why helpful souls are taken away by death. I do not wonder anymore. I leave school when I am fit for this world; the ministrant souls leave school when they are fit for Thy world; they are the ripest fruits of the garden, and they are ripened by fire. The front flowers are Thy Gethsemane flowers - Thy Passion flowers. My place in the New Jerusalem will be determined by my conquest of exclusiveness; and nothing conquers exclusiveness like pain. They who have passed through the furnace of earth come out to Thee unbound. They are freed from the shackles of all caste; therefore they are the prime-ministers of Thy Kingdom.

God's Chosen Servant is Jesus.

The Canterbury Bells Embroidery Block

The Canterbury Bells Embroidery Block No. 7

Original Instructions: Two shadows of blue are used in embroidering this block, lighter for the smallest flowers and top parts of most others with the darker blue on the bottoms and largest flowers. Centers are orange, stem and leaf green. On irregular shaped leaves like this, the poppy etc., a long-and-short stitch may be used instead of merely outlining the edges. Buttonhole stitch is good around the ellipse parts of the bell flowers, too, working up onto the cap part at the top sides and into the center on the lower edge.

• Hand stitch Bluebell Flowers by Stitch Fan
• Bluebells in silk ribbon by craftyattic.com

The Sweet Peas Embroidery Block

Sweet Peas Block No. 14.

Original Instructions: Colors may be of the pink to purple hues, but we suggest two tones of pink on one palm or two of violet on the other, using the darker for the top petals. Outline stitch may be used throughout or a long-and-short or buttonhole stitch around the larger back petal with the center solid. Green starts with the three tiny leaves at the base of the flowers, a light tender green, using three strands of fast-color six-strand floss.

• Sweet Peas embroidery tutorial for beginners from Delicious Monster Tea

Self Surrender

 "As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine ; no more can ye, except ye abide in me."  John 15: 4.

Branches of The Vine.

       No individual becomes great by his own individuality; he only reaches greatness through the life of another. Why is the patriot distinguished? Because he abides in a larger life - the life of his country. Why is the philanthropist distinguished? Because he is a member of a larger body - the body of humanity. Why is the poet distinguished? Because he is part of a larger spirit - the spirit of nature. The truth is, every one of us only begins to live by the act of dying. The branch bears fruit because it loses itself in the tree. An individual man is glorious in proportion as he feels himself to be another. If a branch were conscious it would not say " I am a branch," but " I am a tree." If a subject of the Czar said to a subject of King Edward, ''Russia would beat England in war," the latter would feel sore. Why? Because he has identified his own life with the life of England; her triumph is his triumph, her defeat is his defeat; the branch claims to be the tree. So is it with the Christian. He makes Christ a personal matter - rejoices when He is honored, weeps when He is defamed. I saw a German professor crying like a child over prevailing infidelity. The world would have wondered; it would have said ''Nobody is hurting him!" He would not have admitted that; the branch felt itself to be the tree.

       My soul, hast thou realized the secret of thy greatness? It is not thine independence; it is thy surrender to another - to Christ - to universal Man. It is not even self-denial that will make thee great; what thou needest is not more privation but larger enjoyment. I hear thee speak of the forgetfulness of self. Yes, my soul; but the solemn question is, the manner of thy forgetting. How wouldst thou forget; shall it be by death or shall it be by life? Thou canst forget thyself by chloroform; but that is not greatness; it is the unconsciousness purchased by dying. But I know of an unconsciousness which is purchased by living - living in the life of another; it is the thing called love. The branch could forget itself by being withered; it prefers to forget itself by being in the vine. Get into the vine, my soul! Get into the life of another - the other! Feel thyself a member of His body! Identify thy interests with the interests of Him! Let there beat one pulse between thee and thy Lord! Let His grief be thy grief; let His joy be thy joy! Let thy prayer be the Lord's Prayer, His six golden wishes thy six golden desires in life! Let Him and thee join in prayer together - for the hallowed Name, for the coming Kingdom, for the accepted Will, for the nourishment of life, for the reign of mercy, for the end of sin! Thou shalt reach the sleep of God's beloved when thy forgetfulness of self shall be the remembrance of Jesus.

The Carnations Embroidery Block

The Carnation Embroidery Block No. 10

I was not able to locate the original instructions for the Carnation Block No. 10 at the archives. However, I will include the pattern just right and links to YouTube video showing "how" contemporary embroidery artists make their own interpretations of embroidered carnations below so that my visitors may be inspired to interpret this design by some alternative suggestions.

• Hand Embroidery of Carnations using the Romanian Stitch by Malina_GM EXCLUSIVE
• 3D stitches to make carnations by Crafty Creations
• White work, Brazilian stitching for carnations by Stitch and Flower
• How to make carnation flower with ribbon embroidery by Norma Terrazes

Fruit Designs for Quilts, Embroidery and Coverlets

        The following fruit designs by Briggs are free for our visitors to use in their own personal crafts. Although the original designs were intended for embroidery, you can also use them to design applique', quilts, stencils for coverlets, table linens, and even in the painting of furniture!

• Patterns: Waste Paper, Pouncing & Heat Transfer
• More patterns from Briggs from The Antique Pattern Library (PDF)

Briggs apple embroidery design.

Briggs apricots embroidery design.

Briggs black berries embroidery deisgn

Briggs grape embroidery design.

Large gooseberries design by Briggs.

Orange embroidery design by Briggs.

Briggs pear embroidery design.

Briggs pomegranate design.

Red currants by Briggs to use in embroidery.

Strawberries design by Briggs.

A Sampler from 1927 by Helen Grant

        The sampler below by Helen Grant includes: a house, boy and girl, birds, flowers and two peacocks. The text reads "My portion is not large indeed, But then how little do I need? For Nature's calls are few- ''In this the art of living lies: To want no more than may suffice, And make that little do."

More Samplers:

• Stitch a Sampler for Your Colonial Christmas Tree
• Needlework Samplers by Young Girls
• Simple Cross Stitch Patterns for Baby
• Designs for Embroidering Baskets of Flowers