Let the Comforter Comfort

On By LindaIn allegories, analogies, and parables

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She sighed with satisfaction as she put down her scissors. Finished! It had taken awhile but the hand quilted comforter was finally finished. And just in time for her friend’s birthday. She imagined how cozy her friend would feel cuddled up in the large softly padded blanket. She didn’t usually make such an elaborate gift for birthdays, but this friend was special, as was this birthday.

She lovingly folded the comforter and tied it with a pretty red ribbon, then placed it carefully in a large gift bag. She couldn’t wait to see her friend’s face when she gave it to her in a few days.

She spent the next few days packing for her move out of state. Each time she passed the bag, sitting on the small table near the front door, new images formed in her mind…

…her friend, sitting on the couch, reading a good book and wrapped in the warmth of the comforter.

…her friend, sleeping peacefully on her bed under the cozy weight of the comforter.

…her friend, sitting in her bathtub seeking safety from a storm and surrounded by the softness of the comforter.

When the day came, she handed the bag to her friend with a huge smile, eager to watch her friend’s surprise and delight.

She wasn’t disappointed.

“Oh, wow! This is amazing!” her friend said, holding it up and admiring it. “I can’t believe you made this for me. It must have taken you forever!”

“It did take a while,” she answered. “But it’s well worth it. I wanted to give you something to treasure to remind you how much I treasure you and our friendship.”

“Aww… thank you. I feel the same way and I will treasure this comforter my whole life.”

Six months later, settled in her new home, she began missing her friend and decided to make a visit. Upon entering her friend’s house, she saw the comforter she had made. It wasn’t on the couch where it could be easily grabbed and used. It wasn’t on the bed waiting to provide warmth in the cool evenings. It was displayed on the wall!

“I love the comforter so much that I didn’t want it to get dirty or damaged so I put it on the wall. It looks great up there, doesn’t it!” her friend told her.

Hiding her disappointment, she smiled and agreed – it did look good up there. But it wasn’t made to be displayed on a wall. It was made to be used! To part of her friend’s everyday life. What good was it up there? How could it provide warmth and comfort from up there? But she knew it wasn’t her right to force her friend to use it the way she had purposed it. It belonged to her friend now and it was her friend’s right to choose what to  do with it.

On the way home, she sought the comfort of her Friend… and made a startling connection.

“Lord,” she prayed. “Thank you for Your gift of the Holy Spirit to be my comforter. Help me to allow Him to be part of my everyday life, to seek Him to comfort me when I’m scared and to warm me when I’m cold. May I never keep Him at a distance, knowing He’s there but not allowing Him to serve the purpose for which You gave Him to me.”

And she drove the rest of the way home wrapped in the cozy embrace of her Comforter.

23 thoughts on “Let the Comforter Comfort”

  1. Pingback: Who Is The Comforter? Let This Story and Others Show You

  2. Reblogged this on Light-bites For Your Heart and commented:
    Hello everyone,
    I am so pleased to be able to introduce you to Linda. Her stories are so visual and always end with a beautiful analogy. On top of that, from the posts I have read, it seems she draws all her pictures, which are always so cute! A very talented lady with a fantastic flair for getting the point across in such an interesting way. What a blessing to stumble across such an interesting blog!

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    1. OK, I think I got it on there now. I’m still learning how to get around on this site. Thanks for letting me know the reblog button was not there. 🙂

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    2. I just checked but can’t see the reblog button on my blogs even though it says under configure and sharing that it’s there. Can you see it on your end?

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  4. Hi Linda, this is so, so good! First of all, the picture made me smile as it is so cute! I am trying to imagine you painstakingly colouring in all those tiny squares 🙂

    And the story is so simple yet very powerful! Wow, if all your stories are like this, I will not be able to get enough of them. I love stuff like this. Thank you for taking the time to be still and listen to God’s heart so that you could then share these beautiful analogies with us. You are definately going to be my next re;blog. (Do I have permission to reblog this on my other blog?)

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  7. Every Monday I feature a fellow blogger. I love your stories and today I will feature your blog. This story hit home for me today as I am dealing with a lot in my life. A good reminder to turn to God in everything.

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    1. Thank you! I’m honored you chose my blog today, and am delighted to hear it’s impact on you. It’s a message I also need to remind myself way too often.as I tend to run from everyone including God when I’m not feeling good.

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      1. Me too. God is showing me enough is enough now. Or, is it me saying enough is enough. I am tired of living apart from my husband, I am tired of the anxiety, the fear the hurt. I am going back, feeling the pain, releasing it, in counseling, dealing with it. God is giving me such freedom little by little.

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        1. God bless you for your courage. If it’s anything like I went through last summer, it will be hard with lots of tears but it’s all worth it when you get to the office side. I will be praying for you.

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          1. thanks for the prayers. Yes many tears, PTSD outbursts, learning to slow down the survival emotions that I have lived on practically all my life. I can see a light at the end of the tunnel. My husband is in counseling too, he is starting to respect my needs. Starting to let me vent without defending and yelling at me back. He is not pushing for his needs to be met even though he does not meet mine. It is a slow process of healing from a lifelong of multiple waves of abuse. But, God has me, I am not at fault, anything I did was out of survival mode. Now to get out of survival mode into healing and thriving mode in God. I am documenting my journey in my forum page on my website. It is in the community area.

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            1. I look forward to reading about your journey as you travel the hills and valleys towards healing and freedom in Christ. And I’ll join in with the angels and saints cheering you on!

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              1. Only way to get the really private journey is by registering as a member on my website and following on my forums page. Thanks Linda! I had a revelation today, such weight was taken off me! I do not need to control every little thing my husband does! I can let a lot of it go to the Lord!

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                1. Yea! Totally true! Let God handle your husband. He has resources you don’t, lol. God pretty much told me over the last year to let Him handle the people around me. All He expected from me was to focus on me and and to cooperate with what He was doing in me, which was hard enough. Where did we ever get the idea that we needed to control our husbands, children, and other family members? Certainly not from God! I’m so happy about your revelation!!!

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