THE PERFECT PATTERN.
"MAMMA, just see what a mistake I have made!"
said Alice Stokes, as she held up a dress; "I have worked all the morning, that I might wear the dress this evening. It is too bad!" and the poor child burst into tears.
"I am sorry, Alice. How did you make such a mistake?" asked Mrs. Stokes, tenderly.
"I was not sufficiently careful in the pattern.
You know the two were lying together, and I took the wrong one."
"I see; but dry your eyes, child; it is possible that we can remedy it."
"I wanted to wear it tonight, mother," and again the tears burst forth.
"Provided you waste no time in weeping," said the mother; "this can be done. I will leave my work, and help you arrange it."
"And you are in such a hurry, mamma!" said Alice, as she tried to stop her tears.
"You have worked steadily, and I will help you so that you can wear your dress this evening. It is well that it is a mistake that can be rectified.
It is possible for us to make a mistake that could not by any effort of ours be remedied."
"How do you mean, mamma?"
"I was thinking of Christ as our pattern. If we should make a mistake, and follow another."
"We could not, mamma," exclaimed Alice.
"There are two patterns as there are two ways.
The right of choice is ours. In telling me of your mistake, you said there were two patterns lying together, and you took the wrong one."
"Yes, mamma."
"Diligent as you were, your work was to no profit. You had a wrong pattern; fortunately it was but a dress, and by taking it out and cutting it over, we can remedy it. It will not be so with a lifework. We cannot go over the same ground. "Do you not see how necessary it is that we make sure that we have a correct pattern? Jesus Christ is the only perfect pattern He took upon himself our nature, that we might have an example. He was tried more severely than human nature was ever tried,—hedged in with poverty, tempted, scourged, and spit upon,—still was he the perfect pattern in everything, showing us how we are to carry ourselves under adverse circumstances of life." "O mother, I never thought so much about Jesus as our exemplar. I hope I shall not make a mistake. I shall try harder than ever to imitate Christ, for now I see the necessity of having a perfect pattern."—
S. S. Times.