| 2 Ne. 1: 10 10 But behold, when the time cometh that they shall dwindle in unbelief, after they have received so great blessings from the hand of the Lord—having a knowledge of the creation of the earth, and all men, knowing the great and marvelous works of the Lord from the creation of the world; having power given them to do all things by faith; having all the commandments from the beginning, and having been brought by his infinite goodness into this precious land of promise—behold, I say, if the day shall come that they will reject the Holy One of Israel, the true messiah, their Redeemer and their God, behold, the judgments of him that is just shall rest upon them. Mosiah 1: 5 5 I say unto you, my sons, were it not for these things, which have been kept and preserved by the hand of God, that we might read and understand of his mysteries, and have his commandments always before our eyes, that even our fathers would have dwindled in unbelief, and we should have been like unto our brethren, the Lamanites, who know nothing concerning these things, or even do not believe them when they are taught them, because of the traditions of their fathers, which are not correct.
Quilt of Holes
As I
faced my Maker at the last judgment, I knelt before the Lord along
with all the other souls.
Before
each of us laid our lives like the squares of a quilt in many piles.
An angel sat before each of us sewing our quilt squares together
into a tapestry that is our life.
But as my
angel took each piece of cloth off the pile, I noticed how ragged
and empty each of my squares was. They were filled with giant holes.
Each square was labeled with a part of my life that had been
difficult, the challenges and temptations I was faced with in
everyday life. I saw hardships that I endured, which were the
largest holes of all.
I glanced
around me. Nobody else had such squares. Other than a tiny hole here
and there, the other tapestries were filled with rich color and the
bright hues of worldly fortune. I gazed upon my own life and was
disheartened.
My angel
was sewing the ragged pieces of cloth together, threadbare and
empty, like binding air.
Finally
the time came when each life was to be displayed, held up to the
light, the scrutiny of truth.
The others
rose, each in turn, holding up their tapestries. So filled their
lives had been. My angel looked upon me, and nodded for me to rise.
My gaze
dropped to the ground in shame. I hadn't had all the earthly
fortunes.. I had love in my life, and laughter. But there had also
been trials of illness, and death, and false accusations that took
from me my world, as I knew it. I had to start over many times. I
often struggled with the temptation to quit, only to somehow muster
the strength to pick up and begin again. I spent many nights on my
knees in prayer, asking for help and guidance in my life. I had
often been held up to ridicule, which I endured painfully, each time
offering it up to the Father in hopes that I would not melt within
my skin beneath the judgmental gaze of those who unfairly judged me.
And now, I
had to face the truth. My life was what it was, and I had to accept
it for what it was.
I rose and
slowly lifted the combined squares of my life to the light. An
awe-filled gasp filled the air. I gazed around at the others who
stared at me with wide eyes.
Then, I
looked upon the tapestry before me. Light flooded the many holes,
creating an image, the face of Christ. Then our Lord stood before
me, with warmth and love in His eyes. He said, "Every time you gave
over your life to Me, it became My life, My hardships, and My
struggles. Each point of light in your life is when you stepped
aside and let Me shine through, until there was more of Me than
there was of you."
May all
our quilts be threadbare and worn, allowing Christ to shine through.
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