Who Can We Trust?

Recently I looked at a review for a quilting book I was considering purchasing. The author of the review stated that there were no instructions for a certain section of one of the quilts and so she just had to figure it out for herself. That would be incredibly frustrating. It made me think twice about whether or not I actually wanted to buy the book. If there were problems with the instructions for this one quilt, how do I know that there aren't similar problems throughout the book.

I have been working on a knitted afghan from a book I own. In the picture, it shows the pattern throughout the afghan, but the instructions indicate that you are to work 8 rows in the pattern followed by 4 rows of knitting. I don't want the bands of knitting in between the rows of pattern. I want it like it is in the picture. So I'm skipping the 4 rows of knitting. 

Many patterns have errors and inaccuracies. After all the authors are just human. Most patterns have errata published after the fact. You can often find them online. But if you've tried and struggled with a pattern, only to give up in frustration and then later to find the errata, it can be quite aggravating. It can result in lost time, lost yarn and therefore lost money. 

But ultimately, how important are these things in the light of eternity? Yes, it can cause frustration and aggravation. And it's certainly wise to check out the reviews on a product/pattern before we purchase or try it in order to avoid these annoyances. But it's far more important that we find who or what we can trust in the spiritual realm, which will determine our eternal destiny. This is not something we should leave to chance. It's one thing to hope that a new pattern designer had pattern testers evaluate their instructions to verify their accuracy. It's quite another to just hope that your source of spiritual truth is trustworthy. Especially if that source is just another erring - and sinful - human being. We all make mistakes - sometimes inadvertently, sometimes calculating and deliberate. And we need a source to verify whether another human being is presenting spiritual truth.

So who or what is the pattern tester to determine the veracity of truth? The Bible says in Isaiah 8:20, "To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them." Or, as the New Living Translation puts it, "Look to God’s instructions and teachings! People who contradict his word are completely in the dark." And John 17:7 states, "Thy word is truth." God's word, the Bible, is the guide by which we should test all teachings. If a teaching contradicts His word, it's "darkness," as Isaiah 8:20 says. Psalm 119:105 tells us, "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." The Bible is a trustworthy light on our pathway to peace, to heaven, to Jesus. And there is no errata for that Pattern. 

May God guide you on the pathway to truth.

For more information on this topic, see Is There Anything Left You Can Trust?