When It Seems Sew Wrong

This past year for Christmas I decided to make dresses for my two sisters (which is why I can finally publish this post). I saw a dress pattern in Walmart one day back in August and began thinking about how I would keep this all a secret.

I bought the fabric, buttons, and everything else needed, and for a few days every week I would transform my room into sewing central.

After ironing and cutting the fabric, I came across a step in the pattern that didn’t make sense. I knew what the instructions wanted me to do. Communication was not the issue. I just struggled to see the final product after making a cut that was irreversible. I couldn’t imagine how it would turn out. There was another way I knew I could make this work, but either way I could not go back.

Eventually, I decided to take what I thought was a risk and followed the instructions. After measuring several times, I finally made the cut.

Amazingly, both dresses turned out perfectly.

As I reflected on this later, I was reminded how God’s thoughts are not our thoughts, and His ways are not our ways (Is. 55:8). What we are asked to do may not make sense, but He is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine (Eph. 3:20). He knows what He is doing, and it may turn out even better than we expected.

I go back to Romans 12:2, where the Bible instructs believers to not conform to the “pattern” of this world but be transformed into the pattern of Christ (see Rom. 8:28-29). There is always the option (or temptation) to go around, take the shortcut, or think we know better, but the end will show that trusting the goodness and sovereignty of God and obeying the instructions is the best way.