Matthew 24 - Gospel to the Nations Quiet Book Page

  Matthew 24 is a well-known but I believe largely misunderstood chapter.

Memory Verse: “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.” Matthew 24:14, NKJV.

Materials needed to create the Gospel to the Nations quiet book page:

• A4 felt background sheet - I used black
• this Globe Colouring Page from Colouring Home
• felt in dark/mid blue and light green
• about 40cm of 9mm wide ribbon, preferably with edging that resembles train tracks
• train button
• hot glue and glue gun (optional)
• sewing thread to best match the page
• scissors!

Use the colouring page as a template and create pattern pieces by cutting out each piece. Print it as many times as you need to.

Cut out the large world circle of blue felt - sew it down to more blue felt and cut it out again.

Choose a green felt that goes well with your blue felt, and a ribbon for the train. I would have chosen the black ribbon with white stitching above, but it wasn't quite long enough. I think it looks a bit like train tracks.

Cut out the land pieces from the green felt (remember to place them upside down if you are planning to draw around them so the drawing is on the wrong side). Position them on your blue world and sew down.

Measure the amount of ribbon required to circle the world easily and cut and melt the edges - see my post on How to Stop Ribbons Fraying.

Lay the ends of the ribbon on top of each other beneath the train button and sew it on in place. You can hand sew or set your machine to zig zag setting and adjust the width to fit the button holes and set the length to zero and sew. I added a little hot glue to the back of the stitching just to be sure.

Position your world on your background page with the ribbon around it. Sew down the world along the top and bottom edges, leaving the sides open to allow the train and ribbon to slide through.

Finished!

Difficulty Level = Easy, plus No Sew version.

A very easy quiet book page!
Just use hot glue wherever sewing is recommended for a no sew version.

Key Learning Areas and Skills

• Matthew 24 - it is our job to take the Gospel to the nations
• Imaginative Play - pull the train around the world and take the Gospel to the nations
• String Pull - pull the train around the world and watch it disappear behind the far edge and re-appear at the other
• Fine Motor Skills - all quiet books encourage fine motor skill development
• Hand-eye Co-ordination - all quiet books encourage hand-eye co-ordination

Read the Chapter

Matthew 24

Devotional

Much of this chapter is about the destruction of Jerusalem and The Second Temple in 70AD. The Parable of the Fig Tree is about this too, and is often misunderstood. Perhaps the most important sentence in this chapter relating to the very end of time in which we find ourselves is that the gospel will go to the nations, and then the end will come.

It is our duty to take the gospel to the nations, not to worry about what terrible things may befall us. Jesus promises to be with us to the very end of the age - so what do we need to fear? I feel it is selfishness which drives us to prepare for the end by buying property in the country or hills so we can run to it in the future trials. Selfishness is never something that should be motivating us, therefore the theology behind it must be wrong. 

Ultimately, what we need to worry about is if we took the gospel to the nations. If we spent all our time worrying about our future instead, it will be something to be ashamed of - but if we spend our time preparing others to enter Heaven, God will take care of us and we won't need to worry about anything that may or may not happen to us down here. In reality it doesn't matter - God can resurrect, restore, and re-build.

If you are feeling worried about the future and the end times - read this sermon titled Jesus’ Prophecy of Consummation of the Kingdom, Part 4: The Fig Tree: That Day and Hour No Man Knows by Dr Ligon Duncan.

Human Nature - People Get Ready

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Do you like my Gospel train in Matthew 24, or do you think it doesn't really fit? Comment below!

The Quiet Book Bible Project Progress Chart

Here at Faith and Felt Obsession, Tahlia and I have been working on The Bible Quiet Book Project for a little over six years now, so I thought it might be a good idea to give a progress report.

It is a bit of a celebration of achievement for me, and also I hope it will be a bit of motivation too. I am no-where near where I would like to be with the progress, but it is still worth celebrating.

I feel like I have done so much more (and I have), but when I review what has been posted, I realise that it looks pretty puny. I have made many more pages than you can see from what I have published.

I have been keeping a document with each Bible Book and Chapter listed in a table, with idea notes and links to websites and things. But it is quite a large document to scroll through, and I was thinking that it would be awesome to view a summary of progress on one page.

I found a Bible Reading Record which is provided in a PDF form for printing, or as an Excel spreadsheet. The spreadsheet is adaptable to fit your needs, so I have modified it a little. 

Summary:

• Red squares indicate the Bible Quiet Book page has been made and published for that chapter
• Yellow squares indicate the Bible Quiet Book page has been made but is yet to be published for that chapter
• Uncoloured squares indicate the Bible Quiet Book page has not been completed yet for that chapter

There are 1189 chapters in the Bible - and I have a long way to go. These screenshots were taken in October so by the time this post goes live, it will be a little out of date... but you can view the live document here anytime.

You can get your own Bible Reading Record by Matthew Weathers to print and use freely.

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Comment below on which chapters would you like to see posted or made next!

Matthew 2 - The Wise Men Quiet Book Page

Matthew chapter 2 recounts the story of the Wise Men following the star to find Jesus, King of the Jews.

Memory Verse: “Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.” ” Matthew 2:1-2.

Materials needed to create The Wise Men quiet book page:

• A4 felt background sheet - I used white
• Betty Lukens Felt book 011 Life of Jesus as a Boy Felt Activity Kit (not an affiliate link)
• sewing thread to best match the page
• scissors!

Cut out all the pieces for this page and the page itself from the Betty Lukens set. The Betty Lukens FAQ section has posted a cutting tips PDF.

Sew the Betty Lukens page onto the background felt along three sides, leaving the top edge open to form a pocket. Pop the pieces inside the pocket (or better yet - play with them)!

Finished!

Difficulty Level = Easy, plus No Sew version.

A very easy quiet book page!
Just use hot glue wherever sewing is recommended for a no sew version.

Key Learning Areas and Skills

• Matthew 2 - Learn the story of the Wise Men who came to worship Jesus
• Imaginative Play - re-enact the Wise Men following  the star
• Fine Motor Skills - all quiet books encourage fine motor skill development
• Hand-eye Co-ordination - all quiet books encourage hand-eye co-ordination

Sew the Betty Lukens scene onto your page along three sides
to form a pocket for piece storage

Read the Chapter

Matthew 2

Devotional

Magi... it seems strange that priests from a different religion came to worship Jesus, doesn't it? To find out how the Babylonians came to know prophecies about Jesus, read The Connection Between Daniel and the Christmas Story.

Lyric Video - "We Three Kings" by Kirk Franklin

THE STAR

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What are your biggest questions about the Wise men? Comment below!

Vintage Counting Book

I spied this book from a few pews back in a little church I visited while on holidays a couple of years ago. After the service finished I went and spoke to the lady who owned it, who graciously allowed me to photograph it to share with you all. As you can see, I took the photos right there on the pew.

I was informed that this busy book was around 30 years old. I find it fascinating how quiet books have developed through time, and love to see the classic pages show up so often in the past, and then see the myriad of pages around today.

The page for number 1 is a bird in a birdhouse which is attached to a string to stop it from being lost.

I took a close-up of the inside cover. It looks like the book may have been made from a kit of some kind, titled "Counting Book" by WV Designs. I looked them up but didn't find anything relevant. If know any information, please let me know if the comments.

For a little history on quiet books and the classic pages, you can read my post The Evolution of Quiet Books.

Page 2 is a clown face with what I think is two ears to button on, as well as a bell and ribbon to tie.

Page 3 is ice-cream scoops, although one has been lost over the years.

Page 4 is a turtle with a zipper back for baby turtles to be stored. It looks like a few of them are missing too.

Page 5 is an elephant holding five balloons.

Page 6 has six button-up flowers.

Page 7 is a Noah's ark with seven animals inside.

Page 8 is a fishing net with eight fish inside.

Page 9 has nine shapes to match.

I imagine Page 10 originally had ten kids praying. I have been wondering what the heck the other page was, but I actually think I worked it out...

I think it is a bed and a mat that the kids can kneel on so they can say their prayers before bed.

Finally, I thought I would show you how the book has been bound. It has a strip of ribbon sewn down the spine with gaps to allow split rings to rest in place to house the back-to-back sewn pages with inserted grommets.

Tahlia - Telling It on The Mountain

I hope you enjoyed this trip down memory lane.

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Which is your favourite page in this vintage counting book? Comment below!

Genesis 26 - The Kiss (She is my Sister III) Quiet Book Page

Another lie, another blessing. What a theme for Genesis chapter 26 - but the ultimate theme is that nothing will stop Messiah from arriving as God planned.

Memory Verse: “Now it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked through a window, and saw, and there was Isaac, showing endearment to Rebekah his wife. Then Abimelech called Isaac and said, “Quite obviously she is your wife; so how could you say, ‘She is my sister’?”” Genesis 26:8-9 NKJV.

Materials needed to create the The Kiss (She is my Sister III) quiet book page:

• A4 felt background sheet - I used light blue
• sewing thread to best match the page
• my free Genesis 26 - The Kiss (She is my Sister III) Bible Quiet Book Template Pattern 
• felt in motley grey, white, green, purple, yellow, orange, dark brown, and two skin colours
• three gold decorative materials to fit in with The Kiss painting by Gustav Klimt (go for circular pattern for the dress, and angular pattern for the tunic)
• small green trim
• tiny blue embroidered flowers (or cut some like I did) or you could actually embroider them
• small scrap of narrow brown rik rak
• clear craft glue if using decorative material which is likely to fray - I used polyacetic acid & ethylene resin based glue
• hot glue gun and glue
• one jewellery toggle clasp set in gold - I bought this (not an affiliate link)
• white 4mm satin ribbon

Firstly, cut out the square background for "The Kiss" out of grey marle felt. Cut out your blanket out of the decorative gold fabric chosen and glue it in place on the grey marle square. You can use the template to ensure it is glued in the correct position. Once dry, sew along the edge of the gold fabric with a super-fine zig-zag stitch to ensure it doesn't fray.

Repeat this process for Issac's tunic. Then sew down a piece of orange felt for Rebecca's hair. I cut out a section where her face was to go, but I recommend not doing that and just sewing her face over the top of her hair. Again, use the template to position everything. 

Next, cut out the rest of the pieces for "The Kiss" and position them on your canvas to make sure they fit together well. Sew down Rebecca's face and Issac's head. I also tried to line up the circles on Rebecca's dress with the circular patterns on the dress of "The Kiss".

Because my circular gold pattern fabric was quite translucent, I layered it over the top of yellow felt. I glued two layers to the felt, then trimmed and cut the slit through the two top layers again to allow the arm to pass through.

Sew the pieces down in the following order: Issac's hands, Rebecca's hand around Issac's neck, Rebecca's arm - ensure that her dress is in position and sew her arm over the top of the dress, folding the sleeve back as in the picture below.

Then continue and sew down Issac's hair and Rebecca's dress. For Rebecca's dress, start at the sleeve and finish at the arm. Glue Issac's sleeve and once dry, follow with another zig-zag edge to prevent fraying. You may notice it was difficult for me to see where the edge was and I got it a little wrong and had to do it again. Happily, I was able to cover the mistake with a blue embroidered flower.

I cut up the blue embroidered flowers to make them smaller to resemble the ones in "The Kiss" and then hot glued them in place. You can also hot glue the small green trim onto Issac's hair at this stage (but I hadn't found something to use at this stage so I actually did it last). I wanted to match the green trim with a green felt for the topiary bush to tie them in together. And then if I used a pale green, I wanted to use a pale purple for King Abimelek and vice versa.

Initially I was going to make the window out of brown felt to resemble wood, but I realised that the painting would look much better with a white border. Also, I figured that if King Abimelek was looking out a Palace window, why wouldn't it have been white-washed. Surely a palace back then would have been decorated nicely. But now I am wondering if he looked through a window into their house instead of looking out a palace window. But then again, it may have been similar to the David and Bathsheba incident, where the king's palace was taller than surrounding houses, and thus when he looked out his window, he could see straight onto the roof of nearby houses. 

Arrange the window pieces onto a square of felt and sew down each plank in order. Make two window pieces (one a mirror image of the other).

Cut four little lengths of ribbon to form hinges and a latch, and melt the edges - see my post on How to Stop Ribbons Fraying. Thread the toggle onto one and fold and secure it to the back edge of the door that you want to open. Sew the hinges to the back edge of the opposite side. 

Then hot glue the other side of the door to this one. Thread the round section of the toggle clasp onto the remaining ribbon and fold it as well. 

Position the window in the middle upper portion of the page and make sure there is enough room for the window to open. I wanted to have a clasp on either side so the window could be latched open or closed, but there just wasn't enough room.

Cut out the window frame and pin it in position over the top of the hinges (but not the toggle ribbon). Pin and sew the inside edge of the frame only. Ensure there is enough ribbon length on the hinges to open and close the window freely.

Now cut out the blue page background from the inside of the window frame. Position "The Kiss" behind it before sewing down the outer edge of the window frame, tucking in the ends of the ribbon hinges and securing the ribbon with the round part of the clasp in place as you go.

Insert the toggle into the clasp to secure the window while sewing the rest of the page.

Cut out your remaining template or pieces and arrange them on your page to get the right position. Sew down the white pot while you have white thread on your machine.

Now you can sew down the pieces of your topiary bush - I couldn't get it to look right and asked Faith and Felt Obsession's Facebook followers to help me. 

Thankfully someone noticed that I had two of the pieces upside down. When that was fixed, it fit together perfectly!

Complete the page by sewing down the pieces for King Abimelek in the following order: neck, head, hand, foot, brown rik rak as a shoe, tunic sleeve, hair, crown. Use your template too line everything up correctly.

Finished!

Difficulty Level = Intermediate

The main difficulty I had was sewing a super-fine zig-zag edge around the paper thin decorative fabric, especially where there was a second layer of the same fabric on top of itself (such as Issac's arm) which made it difficult to see.

Key Learning Areas and Skills

• Genesis 26 - Lying will get found out!
• Art Education - learn about the famous painting "The Kiss" by Gustav Klimt - see the article Art Analysis: The Kiss by Klimt by Artsper Magazine
• Jewellery clasps - open and close the window using the toggle clasps
• Peek-a-boo - open the window to find out what is behind
• Fine Motor Skills - all quiet books encourage fine motor skill development
• Hand-eye Co-ordination - all quiet books encourage hand-eye co-ordination

Read the Chapter

Genesis 26

Devotional

Yet another example of God blessing us despite ourselves. All three instances where a patriarch tells a foreign king that his wife is his sister, in addition to many of the matriarchs being barren for a long time before conception, are meant to portray that God's will WILL succeed despite the enemies best efforts. Jesus was born through a line of lying, wife-sacrificing and barren ancestors. God's strength is made perfect in weakness.

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How did my re-imagined "The Kiss" by Gustav Klimt go?