I was looking at a pattern for a shade that I want to make, and considering why it was so pleasing to the eye, was it the fabric or the style or the shape?
I decided it wasn't the fabric that did it, for it was just plain and white, nor was it the style for that was just basic, but it still was so pleasing to my sight.
And then I realized it was the style that made it stand out, the detail of a curved edging on the bottom, that extra step that made it stand up and shout.
For it drew the eye instantly to look at the curves, and wonder how they came to be, for the fabric was not stretchy, it had no 'give', the answer was not obvious to see.
But in the instructions, the answer became clear, the fabric for the edge was cut differently, and that change of direction made all the difference, cut on the bias, the fabric was set free.
It reminded me of myself before I met you, like a shade hanging in the window straight and plain with nothing to make it stand out from the crowd, for loneliness was the constant refrain.
I tried every way I could think of to add beauty, to give it meaning, to add something to make it new, but nothing worked, for I had no anchor, nothing to hold onto that was absolutely true.
Then I met Jesus, who looked at my poor shade, and saw how it could be made anew, if only I would allow Him to move into my heart, He'd give me a brand new view.
When I said yes, Jesus got right to work, He shook the dirt and dust out of the way, and began to cut a completely new pattern, a new start, a new window, a new day.
Some of the fabric was cut straight across so the grain of my life would remain true, but some was cut on the bias to stretch me, so I could discover and learn things brand new.
The day finally came when it was His time, to put me in a new window there, for He gave me the desire of my heart when He showed me that I could be part of a pair.
You were the other half, the part I had been missing, the one God meant just for me, and when we came together, our patterns matched exactly, for we knew God had caused it to be.
I thank God every morning for making me over, for giving me a new life and a new world-view, and most of all for the gift of love that I receive every day in you!
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