Fearfully & Wonderfully
You are fearfully and wonderfully made. Does that verse sound like bla bla bla to you? I mean, it dons every pregnancy announcement and when you’re having a hard day that’s what people encourage you with. It has become a little watered down and lost some of its umph if you ask me. But, several years ago God encouraged me to dig deeper into this Psalm. Today, I’m going to share a little bit of my revelation with you and pray some new hope sinks in for you as well.
So, let’s dig in to Psalm 139:14.
“I praise you God, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Your works are marvelous, I know that full well.”
This isn’t just another Psalm we’re looking at, it’s intensely personal for David. And I hope it becomes intensely personal for you.
The first thing David says to God in this verse is, “I praise you.” He is praising God just because God made him. Let that sink in for a minute.
God, I praise you because I am made. Do we praise God just because we are made? Or, do we walk around condemning the creation that we are? Judging ourselves according to performance, looks, and the ways we don’t measure up against the standards of this world?
What would it look like to praise Him daily, just because He made you? Not your kids, not beautiful flowers or tranquil waterfalls, you, praise Him for you.
Most of us can’t even fathom praising God for making us because we see so many defects in us. Let me tell you, those defects didn’t come from God. They’re wounds from battle; the battle we forget we are fighting every day.
See, we were created, then we were born, and somewhere along the way we started getting tattered. All of the things we were purposed for began to take a hit. From the day we were born, the world began conforming us. Well-meaning parents, family, friends, teachers, co-workers, spouses, and then children of our own started inserting their thoughts of who we should be. Our identity was stolen from us. Satan used those closest to us to sabotage our purposed lives through a well camouflaged disguise of fitting better into this world. Our loved ones were not willing participants, they just wanted what was best for us. But, their eyes of what was best were only on the natural existence of this world, not the Kingdom of God.
As a parent I pray every day to not fall into this trap. I pray to recognize my children’s gifts and cultivate them, not break them. And let me tell you, some days not wanting to break them is a challenge. Seriously though, if I try to change everything about my child to help him fit into this world better, then what was whispered to him in my womb about who he is supposed to be is destroyed.
Now translate this to you. If everyone had embraced all your gifts that were knitted into your fibers, what would your life look like today? What do you think the words were that He whispered to you in your mother’s womb? What purposes did He originally create you for?
That’s what you praise Him for. And, that’s what you strive to get back to, the blueprint He made of you, not the edited version.
Can you make that a prayer? “God, I praise you. I praise you for making me by your original design and I want to get back to those purposes. Lead me back there, God.”
Beyond praising Him for making you, it’s important to note the characteristics with which He made you. David says I will praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. That’s pretty and poetic but what does it mean to be fearfully and wonderfully made? Let’s break it down and take a deeper look.
The Hebrew word for fearfully in this text is yare (yaw-ray). It means to be reverent, fearful or in awe. It’s the same word used throughout scripture when referring to a reverent fear of God.
The Hebrew word for wonderfully is palah (paw-law). It means to be distinct, set apart, marvelous.
Why is this even important to consider? Well, if we read with the Hebrew translation it would sound a little like this; God I praise you, for I am full of reverent fear of You and know that I am distinct. I am made to walk in awe of You and I am set apart.
Is that how you see yourself? Do you walk around with a reverent fear of God and in constant awe?
When you’re tucking your kids in to bed at night, are you in awe of Him or are you just glad to get the day over with? Honestly, I struggle here at times.
When you’re on vacation at the beach, are you in awe of Him or just thankful to be away from the hum drum of life.
When your friend calls with the news that her husband cheated again, do you hold a reverent fear of God in your counsel?
When you’re reading in the sunshine, sleeping with your boyfriend, running with your dog, gossiping about a co-worker, making mud pies with your son, yelling at your kids, enjoying a great meal, taking another hit, climbing the corporate ladder, or perusing social media are you living in reverent fear? I wasn’t. This realization shifted my thinking and my intimacy with my Creator.
You’ve heard you’re unique all your life I’m sure, but do you own the fact that you are set apart? That you are special, purposed, designed for something specific? That you are a distinct creation? Let it sink in that you are made in the image of God, branded with a special purpose and designed to glorify Him. No one else can bring Him honor and glory the way you do. Your blueprint is different because He NEEDS you to be different.
In addition to the fearfully and wonderfully made stuff, David goes on to say that God’s works are marvelous and that he knows that well. An interesting word in the Hebrew translation of this text is the word nephesh.
Nephesh is a really impregnated word, meaning it has lots of definitions. Now, I’m not a scholar but I did some research and consulted others who seem to know something. In this particular passage, David is saying, and my nephesh knows that well. Translated as my mind, heart and body know that well. In other words, all of him. Every ounce of him believes this about the works of God and the way he was made. He doesn’t doubt it, he doesn’t question it, he doesn’t hold up his own strike card and say well I screwed up again. And, we all know he screwed up a lot. He doesn’t say God I know you say this about me but….and fill in any number of objections there.
Friends, God wants us to know that we are fearfully and wonderfully made in the nephesh way. To know with every ounce of us that we are made to walk around in reverent fear and awe of Him. To own the fact that we are distinct and set-apart. He wants us to praise Him for the creation He made us to be, not the one the world has made us become.
If we start praising Him for that, we’ll start desiring that. If we start desiring that, we’ll start taking action toward that. And, if we start taking action toward that, we’ll start living in that.
So, on those mornings when we feel like we need to be dragged out of bed, stop and realize, you are a marvelous creation that He chose to wake up another day. Know that you are waking up because you are distinct. You’re set apart for His purposes and He wants you to choose to live them out. He wants you to hold a reverent fear of Him, because, He could not wake you tomorrow. Just sayin…
But seriously, He longs for you to know Him, His love for you, His craftsmanship of you and His desire to be in intimate relationship with you in the nephesh way. He wants you to know with every ounce of your being who you are in Him.
Prayer:
God, I praise you, for I am full of reverent fear of You and know that I am distinct. I am made to walk in awe of you and I am set apart. Your works are marvelous, amazing, I know this with every ounce of my mind, heart and body. I know that I am designed with a purpose in mind, a purpose unique to me and I want to discover that, I want to live that out. Come Holy Spirit, lead me in this. Be my discerner and bless me with wisdom. Guide me to the places you want me to go to discover the me that you originally wove together.
Peace, Love, Shalom
