Have you ever tried to thread a needle? My wife can do it in a jiffy, and her aged mother with her limited eyesight was a whiz. As for me, I squint, and probe, and finally, after several trials and skewing my face into a knot, I am successful. There seems to be a combination of dexterity, perspective, and depth perception that I lack. Also, I have discovered that there are different sized needles and different kinds of thread, So there are many factors that go into successful needle threading. Needles have been in use for a long time, but not as much today as formerly. Not many modern young people decide to be seamstresses or tailors. This is due primarily to the availability of ready-made clothes. However, it is still necessary to sew on a button betimes. My wife has a button box filled with all kinds and sizes and colors of buttons; she never throws away a button. She also has a box of spools of thread of every color imaginable. So, whether it be a shirt cuff or a dress, she has a button and thread to match.
The Superstition Mountains in Arizona are so named because of the mysterious happenings there. They were the sanctuary for the Apache Indians, the home of the Thunder Gods. It was dangerous to wander into their territory uninvited, and many soldiers and prospectors disappeared there never to be heard from of again. There was, however, an old Dutch trader, named Jacob Waltz, who made frequent trips, carrying in whiskey and firearms and coming out with gold. He would never tell where he got the gold, but before he died in the early 1900's he said, "Look for the eye in the needle." It was rumored that the Apaches had a rich gold mine, and this mysterious mine became known as the Lost Dutchman Mine. There have been many expeditions that have searched for the mine; They have found a sharp peak called the Weaver's needle but no one has found the eye, and no one has located the Lost Dutchman Mine. Gold mines at Goldfield and Mormon Stope have produced millions of dollars in gold, and there is a rumor that every so often an Apache brings a bag of gold into a trading post.
Jesus used the example of a needle to illustrate the relationship of riches to salvation. The picture of a camel going through the eye of a needle is both ludicrous and seemingly impossible, so the disciples asked Him how this could possibly occur, how could anyone be saved? Jesus agreed that it would be impossible except through the power of God. God is a master needle threader when it comes to camels. He can take the rich man and the worst sinner and so change their characters that they will pass the test. May we be so pliable in God's capable hands that He can thread us through the eye of the needle.
