Speaking at a Worldwide Devotional for Young Adults, Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf quoted Steve Jobs, cofounder of Apple saying, “It is impossible to connect the dots looking forward. You can only connect them looking backwards, so you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.”
Elder Uchtdorf went on to say, “What did he mean by that? Perhaps you have seen paintings made by dotting very small specks of color on canvas. Close up, these dots appear unconnected and random. But when you take in the entire painting, you see how the dots blend into colors and how the colors eventually form shapes that reveal a beautiful pattern. What once seemed arbitrary and even confusing begins to make sense.”
He went on to say, “Sometimes our lives are like these paintings. The dots that make up our experiences in life can appear unconnected and chaotic at times. We cannot see any order to them. We can’t imagine that they have a purpose at all.”
He promised that as we look at our lives from an eternal perspective, we’ll begin to see how the dots connect to the grand design God has in mind for each of us, and one day we will see the finished product and we will know and understand that the Master had a plan for those random dots all along.
I couldn’t help but see the connection between the dots in our quest of FamilySearch and the dots in our lives that will one day reflect a beautiful pattern. As we find dates, names, baptism records, death certificates, etc. they could all be classified as random dots. But as we continue to search for and study the “dots,” we are able to find family members and as we find family members, we are able to put families together.
As we reflect on our efforts given to FamilySearch, what may have seemed like random “dots” at one time can eventually allow us to bless the lives of individuals and even seal families together.
With an eternal perspective, it’s easy to see how the dots we accumulate along our way can create a tapestry that will bless not only our lives but the lives of those we discover.
Elder Uchtdorf concluded, “As you strive to trust God and follow His Son, Jesus Christ, one day you will see the finished product, and you will know that the Master Artist had a plan for those random dots all along. You will see that He was preparing you for opportunities and possibilities far more glorious than you ever could have imagined or accomplished on your own.”
Good luck to each of you as you discover the dots in your own lives!
– Doug Nielsen, Director, Granite FamilySearch Center