Reading the Manual

I love to sew! I love to create beautiful pieces. The equipment I have is not fancy and I have always wanted to have a serger sewing machine to make my seams a little more professional. Well, a sweet friend heard me say that a serger was on the top of my wish list. She just happened to have one that she had not used in years. What a blessing! Now I have the serger and thankfully the manual. Now the fun begins. The only problem is that I hate reading the manual!! I hate to follow directions on a pattern, recipe, or pretty much anything. I should just be able to figure it out. And thus the struggle of my life.

Jeremiah 29:11 very plainly tells me that the Lord has a plan for my life - a finished garment. Then He as given me access to the manual or pattern. 29:12 says to call on Him, seek Him. I know this. I have been blessed to have known this since I was a child. However, I am impatient and I want a shortcut. I discard the manual and try to figure it out on my own. Often the result is comparable to an daygown I was working on the other day. It was gonna be so sweet - a lavendar gingham with lace and embroidered flowers. But I was in a hurry. I was sloppy when I cut it out the casing did not lay right. Did I stop and take it out? Ofcourse not, I just added the lace with the excuse that the elastic and lace would hide the problem. It did not. That is okay, I thought. I will just quickly cut that off and add a placket and neck binding. So I started rushing though cutting here and there until I cut too far. I ruined it beyond salvaging. What started as a little issue that could have been corrected with a little patience and care to the pattern and directions turned into a mess I can't fix.

While the daygown might be a total loss, I am so thankful that my life does not have to be. Each and every day I have the opportunity to start fresh with the Lord. If I all Him to guide me by using His manual I can offer up a beautiful garment of praise at the end of the day. Today I will take a deep breath and tell God, "I want to say yes to You today." I don't want to cut corners with my life; I want to follow the pattern He has designed because He is "able to do immearsurably more than all we ask or imagine." (Eph 3:20)