---
title: Improvement Era
description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930.
authors:
  - Richards, L. L. Greene
collections:
  - periodicals
tags:
  - magazine
  - improvement-era
periodical: Improvement Era
volume: 7
number: 4
published: 1904-02
publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations
publisher_place: Salt Lake City
language: en
type: magazine
reference: 'L. L. Greene Richards, "The Masterpiece," *Improvement Era* 7, no. 4 (February 1904): 248–249.'
source:
  url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera0704unse
  transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers.
  identifier: improvementera0704unse
start_page: 248
end_page: 249
rights:
  status: public-domain
  basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1904-02)
  source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera0704unse
  publication_year: 1904
  note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1904, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright.
---

# The Masterpiece

<!-- page:248 -->

THE 
        MASTERPIECE.
BY 
        L. 
        L. 
        GREENE 
        RICHARDS,
This 
        morning 
        I 
        heard 
        a 
        short 
        discourse 
        delivered 
        to 
        a 
        select
congregation. 
        It 
        was 
        not 
        given 
        from 
        notes, 
        but 
        by 
        inspiration 
        from
heaven. 
        The 
        chief 
        point 
        made 
        by 
        the 
        speaker, 
        I 
        consider 
        worthy
of 
        being 
        kept 
        in 
        view, 
        so 
        I 
        will 
        give 
        it 
        in 
        my 
        way, 
        and 
        pass 
        it 
        along
for 
        others 
        to 
        take 
        up 
        and 
        repeat, 
        as 
        they 
        may 
        feel 
        impressed
to 
        do.
The 
        speaker 
        said, 
        in 
        substance, 
        that 
        there 
        had 
        been 
        a 
        certain
important 
        room 
        which 
        was 
        to 
        be 
        painted. 
        This 
        work 
        of 
        art 
        was
given 
        over 
        to 
        a 
        master 
        artist, 
        and 
        he 
        employed 
        others 
        to 
        work 
        under
his 
        direction. 
        He 
        would 
        say 
        to 
        one: 
        "I 
        want 
        you 
        to 
        fill 
        in 
        this 
        por-
tion of 
        the 
        room 
        with 
        the 
        designs 
        I 
        will 
        furnish 
        you, 
        and 
        in 
        the 
        col-
ors I 
        shall 
        select 
        for 
        you." 
        And 
        to 
        another 
        he 
        would 
        say, 
        "I 
        would
like 
        you 
        to 
        paint 
        these 
        designs 
        here, 
        and 
        notice 
        that 
        the 
        blending
of 
        the 
        colors 
        must 
        be 
        done 
        like 
        this," 
        And 
        so 
        on; 
        to 
        each 
        of 
        his
assistants 
        he 
        gave 
        the 
        plan 
        which 
        he 
        desired 
        should 
        be 
        worked 
        out
in 
        each 
        particular 
        part 
        of 
        the 
        room.
The 
        result 
        was 
        a 
        wonderful 
        work 
        of 
        harmony 
        and 
        completeness
in 
        the 
        painting 
        of 
        the 
        room. 
        The 
        under-artists 
        had 
        not 
        real-
ized that 
        such 
        would 
        be 
        the 
        case. 
        They 
        simply 
        followed 
        the
directions, 
        and 
        carried 
        out 
        the 
        plans 
        of 
        their 
        master. 
        But 
        the 
        mas-
ter himself 
        had 
        the 
        whole 
        design 
        mapped 
        out 
        in 
        his 
        mind 
        before-
hand, and 
        could 
        tell 
        each 
        one 
        of 
        his 
        artists 
        just 
        what 
        he 
        wanted
him 
        to 
        do.
Now, 
        we, 
        in 
        a 
        certain 
        sense, 
        as 
        children 
        of 
        our 
        Father 
        in
heaven, 
        are 
        like 
        those 
        under-artists; 
        and 
        our 
        Father 
        is 
        the 
        great
and 
        allwise 
        Master.    
        He 
        has 
        the 
        whole 
        plan 
        of 
        the 
        work 
        of 
        salva-

<!-- page:249 -->

THE 
        MASTERPIECE. 
        249
tion 
        in 
        his 
        mind. 
        He 
        gives 
        to 
        each 
        one 
        of 
        us 
        the 
        portion 
        to 
        do
that 
        in 
        his 
        wisdom 
        is 
        best 
        designed 
        for 
        us.
We 
        often 
        fail 
        to 
        see 
        anything 
        more 
        of 
        the 
        pattern 
        to 
        be
formed, 
        but 
        just 
        the 
        small 
        spot 
        upon 
        which 
        we 
        are 
        at 
        work. 
        But
if 
        we 
        do 
        the 
        section 
        assigned 
        us 
        well 
        and 
        faithfully, 
        no 
        matter 
        how
little 
        we 
        see 
        now 
        of 
        the 
        perfect 
        work 
        to 
        be 
        wrought 
        out, 
        when 
        it 
        is
finished, 
        we 
        shall 
        each 
        look 
        with 
        joy 
        and 
        satisfaction 
        upon 
        the 
        por-
tions we 
        have 
        done.
We 
        must 
        work 
        as 
        our 
        Master 
        designs, 
        not 
        as 
        we 
        ourselves
might 
        consider 
        best, 
        because 
        we 
        know 
        so 
        little 
        of 
        the 
        whole 
        plan.
But 
        through 
        obedience 
        and 
        faithfulness, 
        we 
        can 
        each 
        fill 
        our 
        allot-
ments in 
        the 
        way 
        which, 
        taking 
        them 
        altogether, 
        will 
        produce 
        the
most 
        harmonious 
        blending 
        of 
        shades, 
        and 
        fitting 
        together 
        of 
        pat-
terns, that 
        could 
        possibly 
        be 
        arranged.
Our 
        own 
        lives 
        belong 
        to 
        the 
        wonderful 
        picture, 
        the 
        grand
masterpiece 
        which 
        is 
        being 
        painted 
        by 
        the 
        artist-children 
        of 
        our
Father, 
        everywhere. 
        And 
        no 
        matter 
        how 
        well 
        we 
        may 
        work 
        for 
        a
time, 
        unless 
        we 
        keep 
        up 
        to 
        the 
        line 
        drawn 
        for 
        us, 
        we 
        are 
        liable 
        to
make 
        some 
        false 
        touch, 
        or 
        a 
        blotch 
        of 
        some 
        kind, 
        that 
        will 
        mar
the 
        beauty 
        of 
        our 
        former 
        efforts, 
        or 
        perhaps 
        cut 
        us 
        out 
        of 
        the 
        pic-
ture altogether. 
        Then 
        how 
        unsatisfactory 
        our 
        whole 
        life-work
would 
        be, 
        not 
        only 
        to 
        ourselves, 
        but 
        to 
        the 
        Master 
        as 
        well. 
        What
father 
        would 
        consider 
        a 
        family 
        group-picture 
        of 
        his 
        household
complete, 
        with 
        some 
        of 
        the 
        members 
        left 
        out?
And 
        shall 
        we 
        mar 
        the 
        excellence 
        of 
        our 
        Father's 
        masterpiece
by 
        acts 
        of 
        folly 
        or 
        wickedness 
        that 
        would 
        render 
        us 
        unworthy 
        to
appear 
        in 
        the 
        places 
        we 
        should 
        fill? 
        We 
        trust 
        that 
        such 
        will 
        not
be 
        the 
        case 
        with 
        any 
        of 
        us. 
        Let 
        us 
        study 
        carefully 
        every 
        line 
        to
be 
        drawn, 
        every 
        tint 
        to 
        be 
        produced, 
        every 
        figure 
        to 
        be 
        brought
out, 
        and 
        all 
        things 
        that 
        are 
        apportioned 
        for 
        us 
        to 
        do, 
        according 
        to
the 
        will 
        of 
        him 
        who 
        is 
        the 
        designer 
        of 
        the 
        great 
        masterpiece.