For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother's womb.
I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that
my soul knows very well.
My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret And skillfully wrought in the
lowest parts of the earth.
Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days
fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them.
You know I have no trouble believing that God is very skillful, that He is amazing, that He is faithful, that He has a plan and a purpose for me; however I must admit to having significant trouble with words and phrases such as 'fearfully and wonderfully made," and "marvelous." Unlike the psalmist I struggle here. There is no question in my mind that God is all those things it is in reference to who I am that is so difficult. I am tired of it being difficult, but trust me when I say simply stating that I am going to believe "it" whatever it is about me that I need to believe does not make it happen. I am working on exchanging the lies for truth and trusting that what God says about me is also true...just saying it is a long process and a hard part of my journey.
So I will not focus on that confession but rather on the fact that God, Himself is praiseworthy. Praiseworthy for so many reasons but let's just focus on these verses ;) So He is worthy of praise because He is the Creator! He had a plan for each of us from before we were born and He made it and is making it happen. We had no part in the process. Notice He even 'covered me in my mother's womb' - He protected me and watched out for me even then. No doubt the process of the creation of a human life is a wonderful process as well as a marvelous one. There is nothing like a new baby!
No where during this process was I hidden or unseen by my LORD, my Master. He used His skill when He made me. All of my days are written and fashioned for me even before my 'days' began!!! Amazing, isn't He?
So in trying to see myself and help you see yourself through His eyes recognizing that He is praiseworthy is a good beginning. Trusting (choosing to trust) that what He says is true is also a good place to start.
Look, you and I have and always will be seen by God as "fearfully wonderful" and one of His marvelous works. Marvelous??? (causing great wonder; extraordinary) Wait a minute. His work, of which I am one as are you, is considered extraordinary, a cause of great wonder! Here is the kicker...my soul does not know that very well, but I want to! He used the same skills that He used to paint a sunset or decorate a fall tree to make me and you! He knew me before I was born, before I was even formed and He knows me now! He loves me the same!!! Nothing has changed...He does not change! He is who He says He is!
Check out verses 17-18: How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; When I awake I am still with You.
From Matthew Henry's Commentary on Psalm 139, "Providence has had a vast reach in its dispensations concerning us, and has brought things about for our good quite beyond our contrivance and foresight. They are dear to us; we must think of them with a great deal of reverence, and yet with pleasure and thankfulness. Our thoughts concerning God must be delightful to us, above any other thoughts. (bold, mine;) 2. Numerous to admiration: How great is the sum of them! We cannot conceive how many God's kind counsels have been concerning us, how many good turns he has done us, and what variety of mercies we have received from him. If we would count them, the heads of them, much more the particulars of them, they are more in number than the sand, and yet every one great and very considerable."
What God thinks should be precious (valuable) to me! His thoughts of me are good! I see now that I need to focus on God and recognize that He states/He thinks I am "marvelous," that I have been "skillfully" made, as have you my friend. I need to praise Him and thank Him that He knows exactly how many days I have here on this earth and He is with me all the time!!! I have not "ruined" myself nor disappointed Him. I am still His child and as such valuable to Him! Do you see this? Do you know how valuable you are to Him???
Father God, I spend so much time thinking about myself and how I wish I could do this or that. Or that I could be more gentle, more kind etc... or being disappointed with myself and who I am. Forgive me, LORD. May I allow Your truth to penetrate my heart and mind. Please Father, transform me from the inside out. May I focus on You and Your Word. May I spend my time praising You rather than in any other way. Show me how to make these principles my first response and not the second, fifth or even last. Thank You that Your mercies are new every morning and that Your faithfulness is great. Thank You for Your forgiveness and for Your plan and purpose. I praise You that You are not like me, with conditions and expectations that are unmeetable but You are unconditional in Your love and You provide the strength I need to do anything that You require of me. Help me to let the rest go!!! God, have Your way in me!
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