It felt like I had been sewing for ages. Between one girl going to give six months on the Navajo reservation and two girls going to teach, the threads continued to fly. But what caught my attention one day was how often I was changing the thread on my machine and refilling the bobbin. What made an even bigger impression was the way even the huge rolls of serger thread emptied out and I mused. “I wonder how many miles of thread I have gone through already?” 

Which in turn prompted another thought in my mind. If my Christian life was calculated in miles of thread, would I be constantly refilling and replacing it? How often would I need more? I wasn’t thinking about the years it had been since I had started this journey, but more the times when my Christian life had been real, fulfilling, and lived out unto the Lord.

Although I do not claim to be a true seamstress, I have been sewing since I was a teenager. But considering that, there have been days, weeks, and sometimes even months when my machine has sat idle with no thread being used. 

Is that how it is in my Christian life sometimes? Although I may have been following Jesus since I was a young girl of twelve, have there been days, weeks, or months when I have not produced the fruits of this walk with Him?

Walking into my sewing room, one would not need wonder if I had been sewing. With complete dresses finished, some cut out, an array of sewing notions sitting around, and all the many threads in the trash and on the floor, the story tells itself. 

Walking into my presence, would one wonder if I was a Christian? Sure they might see it in the way I dress and wear my hair accordingly, but would the quietness in my spirit, the joy in my heart, and the peace on my countenance be a story that tells itself? 

How many miles of thread would I have used already? Would the spools empty out at an astounding speed? Do I forgive quickly, apologize for wrongs, and show compassion? Do I tell the truth, show respect, and let God’s love shine through me?  Do I love God more than myself? Does the way I dress, the way I act and the way I talk speak of Him? If today I had been given a brand new spool, would it be gone? Half empty? Or look like it hadn’t even been used yet?

My empty spools have inspired me this week. I want the threads of my Christian life to look just like this. I want to use his threads so fully and so completely and so often that they need to be replaced and refilled again and again and again by Him.