For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
When I awake,
I am still with you.
-Psalm 139:13-18
The longer I spend in this psalm, the more I am completely overwhelmed by the love of God for us! I mean, God does not just love us like we sometimes say we love somebody. He loves us, in a way that no human can ever truly compare. His love is unconditional. His love pays attention to details we would often ignore or forget. His love planned good things for us in advance of our living them. His love will always be there.
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. (Ps. 193:13)
God is the One Who created us. He saw us and knew us before we were even born. God carefully knit together every little detail about who we are. There is nothing about us that is a surprise to Him.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. (Ps. 139:14)
God deserves our praise for how intricately He has made us. He has given us incredible worth and value because He took such time to lovingly put us together exactly the way He wanted us to be.
But, how often do we actually believe this? How often do we praise God because of how wonderfully He made us? My guess would be that this is a hard one for many people to believe, I know it is for me. I have days when I really do not feel like God's wonderful creation. But, I am learning that this is not dependent on how I feel - whether we feel like it or not, we have been wonderfully and fearfully made by a loving God. Sometimes we have to choose to believe the truth, even when we do not feel the truth.
My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. (Ps. 139:15-16)
We have never been out of God's sight! He is the One who wove every part of us together in secret. God knows us more intimately than any person on this earth ever has or ever will. The best part of it, is that God can handle knowing us that well - knowing all the good and all the bad about us will not be a problem for God.
All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. (Ps. 139:16)
God had all of our days in place before we existed. Nothing that happens to us is a surprise to Him! He has a plan for our lives - a way that He desires to use us for His glory and His kingdom purposes.
How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. (Ps. 139:17-18)
There is no way we could ever truly grasp God's thoughts towards us. We can never count them. We can never see how great they are. His thoughts toward us are always for our good.
When I awake, I am still with you. (Ps. 139:18)
What reassurance these 8 words contain. Every moment we are with God - whether we are sleeping or are awake. How amazing is that! Every time we consciously think the thought, we are still with God. And in those moments when we are not conscious of it, we are still with God.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Psalm 139:7-12
More thoughts from Psalm 139. There is just so much in this psalm to learn about God and how He sees us.
Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,"
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day.
for darkness is as light to you.
-Psalm 139:7-12
What an amazing God we serve!
Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? (Ps. 139:7)
We cannot escape from God's presence. There is nowhere we can go where God is not.
If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if make my bed in the depths, you are there. (Ps. 139:8)
No matter how high or how low we try to go to escape from God, we cannot. We will forever be "running into God" everywhere that we turn in trying to run from Him. There is absolutely nowhere we can go to escape from God!
If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. (Ps. 139:9-10)
Everywhere we go in life we can be led by God's hand. It does not matter what has happened in our lives, God is still leading us and guiding us safely through. There is nothing that can happen that will separate us from God's hand in our lives. He is always there to guide and protect us - even when we try to run. We can still count in Him to be there when we come to our senses again.
If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me," even the darkness will not be as dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you. (Ps. 139:11-12)
Even seeking the darkest places in our world will not separate us from God. There is an odd comfort that comes from knowing we can be in the darkest place of our lives and God will still be able to see us clear as if it were the middle of a sunny, cloudless day. He cannot be deterred by darkness. God does not see darkness; all He sees is us and He wants to draw us back to the light. He will not leave us alone in the darkness!
This portion of Psalm 139 makes it very clear that we cannot escape from God's presence no matter how hard we try to. God will always be there when we are willing to look and acknowledge. This also means, that no matter the circumstances we find ourselves in we can always count on God to be there. He is the One Person that we never have to fear is going to leave us. If we cannot escape from His presence, then it is not possible for Him to not be there when we turn. We may choose to do our best to ignore His presence at times, but that does not mean that He is not there the moment we choose to acknowledge His presence with us - His presence that has been there even when we refused to acknowledge that is was. How amazing is that!
Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,"
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day.
for darkness is as light to you.
-Psalm 139:7-12
What an amazing God we serve!
Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? (Ps. 139:7)
We cannot escape from God's presence. There is nowhere we can go where God is not.
If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if make my bed in the depths, you are there. (Ps. 139:8)
No matter how high or how low we try to go to escape from God, we cannot. We will forever be "running into God" everywhere that we turn in trying to run from Him. There is absolutely nowhere we can go to escape from God!
If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. (Ps. 139:9-10)
Everywhere we go in life we can be led by God's hand. It does not matter what has happened in our lives, God is still leading us and guiding us safely through. There is nothing that can happen that will separate us from God's hand in our lives. He is always there to guide and protect us - even when we try to run. We can still count in Him to be there when we come to our senses again.
If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me," even the darkness will not be as dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you. (Ps. 139:11-12)
Even seeking the darkest places in our world will not separate us from God. There is an odd comfort that comes from knowing we can be in the darkest place of our lives and God will still be able to see us clear as if it were the middle of a sunny, cloudless day. He cannot be deterred by darkness. God does not see darkness; all He sees is us and He wants to draw us back to the light. He will not leave us alone in the darkness!
This portion of Psalm 139 makes it very clear that we cannot escape from God's presence no matter how hard we try to. God will always be there when we are willing to look and acknowledge. This also means, that no matter the circumstances we find ourselves in we can always count on God to be there. He is the One Person that we never have to fear is going to leave us. If we cannot escape from His presence, then it is not possible for Him to not be there when we turn. We may choose to do our best to ignore His presence at times, but that does not mean that He is not there the moment we choose to acknowledge His presence with us - His presence that has been there even when we refused to acknowledge that is was. How amazing is that!
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Psalm 139:1-6
For the last couple of weeks, I have been spending some time really reflecting on the first few verses of Psalm 139. There is such incredible truth about God and how He knows and cares about us in just these few verses.
O Lord, you have searched me
and you know me.
You know when I sit and when I rise,
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
Before a word is on my tongue
you know it completely, O Lord.
You hem me in - behind and before;
you have laid your hand upon me.
Suck knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
-Psalm 139:1-5
So much in just a few words. We truly do serve an amazing and loving Father who knows us more intimately and cares about us more deeply than any other person could.
O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. (Ps. 139:1)
God is the One who knows all of us and knows us best. There is nothing about us that He does not know. In fact, God has searched out every corner of us and knows even what is hidden in the deepest darkest corners of us. How amazing and scary all at once! But, the best part is that God can handle knowing all of this about us.
You know when I sit and when I rise . . . (Ps. 139:2)
God knows us so well and cares so much about us that He notices even the mundane things of life - like when we sit down or stand up. There is nothing in our lives that God does not notice and does not see!
. . . you perceive my thoughts from afar. (Ps. 139:2)
God knows all of our thoughts. There is nothing we think that we can hide from Him. He knows it all! This can be a little bit scary, because our thoughts are not always things that are actually pleasing to God - at times they may be sinful and despicable to God. But, it can also bring an odd sort of comfort. There a comfort that comes with being known so well and still being loved. If God is so aware of the things we think each day and still loves us so much, then we must have some incredible worth in His eyes!
You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. (Ps. 139:3)
God does not just look down from heaven to see what we are doing. He does not keep that kind of distance. He comes near enough to be familiar with all we do. This familiarity comes from walking with us through every moment of life. God loves us and cares about us enough to choose to come near and make Himself familiar with all our ways. What a blessing to know that God is close and cares so much!
Before a word is on my tongue, you know it completely, O Lord. (Ps. 139:4)
God knows what we are going to say before we say it. That can be a bit of a sobering thought when we stop and reflect on some of what comes out of our mouths. Sometimes I wonder if what we say would change if we remembered in the moment that God knows what we are going to say before we say it. Would we be more careful about what we say is we were more conscious of that?
You hem me in - behind and before . . . (Ps. 139:5)
God has completely surrounded us and protects us. With Him going ahead of us and following behind us, we never have to worry about being vulnerable to an attack. He completely wraps us in His safe and loving arms. In all situations we find ourselves in we can rest secure that our Father, God, is there to protect us - to hold us in His loving arms and be our source of strength, comfort, and security. We never have to doubt that He is there! We can count always count on Him!
. . . you have laid your hand upon me. (Ps. 130:5)
God has put His hand on our lives. He has gifted us and has a pathway He wants to guide us on. With His hand on us we do not have to fear anything He asks or question whether we can actually do it. His hand on us, gives us what we need to do whatever He asks.
O Lord, you have searched me
and you know me.
You know when I sit and when I rise,
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
Before a word is on my tongue
you know it completely, O Lord.
You hem me in - behind and before;
you have laid your hand upon me.
Suck knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
-Psalm 139:1-5
So much in just a few words. We truly do serve an amazing and loving Father who knows us more intimately and cares about us more deeply than any other person could.
O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. (Ps. 139:1)
God is the One who knows all of us and knows us best. There is nothing about us that He does not know. In fact, God has searched out every corner of us and knows even what is hidden in the deepest darkest corners of us. How amazing and scary all at once! But, the best part is that God can handle knowing all of this about us.
You know when I sit and when I rise . . . (Ps. 139:2)
God knows us so well and cares so much about us that He notices even the mundane things of life - like when we sit down or stand up. There is nothing in our lives that God does not notice and does not see!
. . . you perceive my thoughts from afar. (Ps. 139:2)
God knows all of our thoughts. There is nothing we think that we can hide from Him. He knows it all! This can be a little bit scary, because our thoughts are not always things that are actually pleasing to God - at times they may be sinful and despicable to God. But, it can also bring an odd sort of comfort. There a comfort that comes with being known so well and still being loved. If God is so aware of the things we think each day and still loves us so much, then we must have some incredible worth in His eyes!
You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. (Ps. 139:3)
God does not just look down from heaven to see what we are doing. He does not keep that kind of distance. He comes near enough to be familiar with all we do. This familiarity comes from walking with us through every moment of life. God loves us and cares about us enough to choose to come near and make Himself familiar with all our ways. What a blessing to know that God is close and cares so much!
Before a word is on my tongue, you know it completely, O Lord. (Ps. 139:4)
God knows what we are going to say before we say it. That can be a bit of a sobering thought when we stop and reflect on some of what comes out of our mouths. Sometimes I wonder if what we say would change if we remembered in the moment that God knows what we are going to say before we say it. Would we be more careful about what we say is we were more conscious of that?
You hem me in - behind and before . . . (Ps. 139:5)
God has completely surrounded us and protects us. With Him going ahead of us and following behind us, we never have to worry about being vulnerable to an attack. He completely wraps us in His safe and loving arms. In all situations we find ourselves in we can rest secure that our Father, God, is there to protect us - to hold us in His loving arms and be our source of strength, comfort, and security. We never have to doubt that He is there! We can count always count on Him!
. . . you have laid your hand upon me. (Ps. 130:5)
God has put His hand on our lives. He has gifted us and has a pathway He wants to guide us on. With His hand on us we do not have to fear anything He asks or question whether we can actually do it. His hand on us, gives us what we need to do whatever He asks.
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