Until The Finger Work Is Done

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ne of my fondest memories from childhood centers around the back hall of our home on Main Street.  Much like a magnet, everyone in the house was drawn to the back hall, usually at the same time, creating a traffic jam which made New York City look tame.

Our back hall contained the washer and dryer, which were always in use, the pantry, the most popular spot in the house, the utility closet, daddy’s closet, the dog’s box, the back door, and mom’s sewing machine.  As you can see, there was always a constant stream of traffic in the back hall and, although congested, it was a place I thoroughly loved to be.

Several times during the year, mom sat in the back hall at her sewing machine doing what she loved best, making us clothes.  She loved the challenge and I could always tell when she was working on a project because it was the only time she tolerated any kind of clutter in the back hall.  Since it is impossible to sew without making a mess, mom tolerated piles of cloth, balls of unused thread on the floor, scraps of pattern paper, and the presence of the ironing board which effectively blocked traffic flow in the back hall, forcing us to detour through the rest of the house.

As Easter rapidly approached, I remember seeing her in front of her sewing machine, making clothes for all of us. Every Easter I remember the clothes mom made for me, for my brother and sister, and for herself.  Daddy always had suits but mom wanted to make clothes for us, and make them she did.  Beautiful clothes, ones that made me feel very good about myself, and one’s that made me very proud of her.  I still have several shirts mom made for me in my closet.  Even though I can no longer wear them, I will not part with them!

The most important part of mom’s sewing was the finger work; it was also the most tedious.  This involved hemming pants and skirts, sewing on clasps and snaps, working buttonholes, and placing buttons.  Mom finished all her projects up to the finger work.  Usually, she worked well into the night sewing buttons and placing decorative stitching for that added touch.  While the rest of us slept, she sat in the back hall, listening to the radio, singing as she worked, her hands expertly working the needle and the thread until the job was done.

Many things I have learned from my mother but this example of her diligence in the details speaks volumes to me about the love of my Heavenly Father and His care for me.  God is very interested in the finger work of my life and of your life.  He pays close attention to every detail and leaves nothing undone or unfinished.  Working while we are resting, working while we are asleep, working so far ahead of us we can’t even fathom the things He has planned for us. God does not rest until the finger work of our lives is done.

In Psalm 139:13-16, David reminds us just how important God’s finger work is: “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.  My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”

Notice the words David uses to describe how God works.  God created, He knitted, He made, He wove, He saw, He ordained, and He wrote!  Every one of these activities requires thought and planning.  Every one of these actions speaks about God’s will and desire to create and to make us down to the last detail.  It is impossible to knit without touching the yarn.  It is impossible to weave without first conceiving a pattern.  It is impossible to ordain without giving a purpose.  Yes, God’s finger work is most evident in us because He loves us and He cares for us and He wants us!  Of all the things God created, only man was given the opportunity to have a relationship with God.  Only man has the opportunity to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ and the redemption of man from his sins is the reason Jesus came to die on Calvary’s cross.

Wherever you are today in your walk with God, know this.  As His child, He loves you, He has plans for you, and He is constantly working on you to bring you into conformity with His son, Jesus Christ.  God will keep working in your life until He has accomplished His purpose for and through you.  No detail will be neglected because God will not finish until the finger work is done!  You have His word on it today!!