DESIGNED BY GOD 2

...Perhaps fifteen years ago Debbie bought two books, each of which are titled, Your Life Story in

Your Own Words: A Lasting Heritage for Your Children. They are designed for parents or

grandparents to write in, responding to a series of questions that prompt them to fill in details about their lives. Debbie made some progress on filling in her book, but I forgot about mine. Recently she

reminded me about it, so I glanced through it last night. It asks many questions. Here are a few.

What were your youthful goals and ambitions?

That’s easy. I wanted to be a major league baseball player.

Were you able to fulfill them?
The short answer to that is no, my goals and ambitions changed.
When you were young did you admire a famous person? Yes.
Who was it, and what made you admire that person?
I will not give the name, but the reason I admired that person was because he hit more home runs than anyone else in major league baseball.

When you were young, did you ever go to a funeral?
No, I didn’t go to a funeral until I was in my twenties.

Did you have brothers and sisters? Yes, three brothers and three sisters.
Did your parents treat you all the same?

Since I am a middle child, I can’t wait to answer that one!

How old were you when you discovered that God loved you? I was twenty-one.
How did it affect your life? It changed me completely!

 

I am not sure how much my children and grandchildren will value my book if and when I ever finish filling in the answers to all of its questions, but they will certainly learn a great deal more about me if I do. However, God knows far more about any of us than could be contained in such a book. From the moment of conception to this very day, God continues to be concerned with every aspect of our

lives. He sees when we are burdened. He notices when we are happy. He knows when we are broken-hearted. He is aware when we grieve or when we rejoice. He knows when we are misunderstood. God is aware of all of that because He is everywhere at the same time and knows everything all the time, so with the Psalmist we respond, “Praise the Lord!” I am glad that God knows everything about me and cares about each detail. I am glad He is capable of bearing my burden and seeing me through on the path that He has charted for me.
The Psalmist must have learned as a child that God loved him. No doubt his mother told him, “God formed you in my womb before you were born, and God loved you before I gave birth to you

God was happy with you!” Some people grow up feeling they are not worth much. Perhaps you are one of them, but Psalm 139 indicates that you have great value in God’s eyes. He wrote a book—His

biography of you. In the opening pages, I suppose, is His sketch of what you look like. Perhaps if we could see God, He would be standing back and smiling broadly, thinking, I love this person! Then in His foreknowledge, He looks through the years of your life, taking into account the free will He gave you. He knew the course you will take before you were ever born.

He knew that you would hear of His great interest in you on this very day. He wrote that in His book. He knows what you will do with what you have learned about Him. He knows already if you will drop to your knees and give thanks and praise to Him, or occupy yourself otherwise and not do that.

God allows your story to unfold the way it is going to be. There are decisions you have made and will make that will affect your story, but God knows your whole history already. No wonder the Psalmist, upon realizing that, could say, “How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand” (Psalm 139:17-18). What a vast number of thoughts . . . and they are good thoughts! The Prophet Jeremiah said,

“I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil,

to give you an expected end” (Jeremiah 29:11).

God’s awareness of David was not alarming to the young Psalmist, but reassuring. Verse 18 continues, “. . . when I awake, I am still with thee.” God will be with us when we lie down tonight, and He will be with us when we wake up tomorrow. Let us give Him thanks for His intense interest in us. In another Psalm, David said, “I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make her boast in the Lord” (Psalm 34:1-2).

When we are proud of something, we let it be known. We are not reticent about expressing our admiration and appreciation. We have reason to be proud of God’s interest in us. We have reason to praise the Lord. We have reason to give Him thanks. He is deserving of our worship, and we want to render our praise to Him. We teach our children at an early age to say thank you. It is just common

courtesy to express appreciation when someone does something for you. We want to say thank you to God! If we have a need, we can let it be known to the Lord, but we should always remember to express our gratitude for His blessings and His care for us.

Today, as we look back over the years of our lives that have elapsed so far, we are all aware that we have not always done everything in a perfect manner, but let us determine by the grace of God that we are going to do things as He would have us do them as we go forward. If you find yourself in an unsaved condition, drop to your knees and ask the Lord to forgive you. Ask Him to come into your heart and to give you power to live the way He wants you to live. You may think initially you cannot live the way God desires. That is true;

in your own strength you cannot. It takes His power, but He is all powerful, too. He is omnipotent. He can change your heart and life, and give you a heart full of praise and thanksgiving for His all-seeing, all-knowing, and ever-present care for you.

 

''God fashioned you in the womb, and continues to be

concerned with every aspect of your life.''

...From a sermon by Darrel Lee

Superintendent General of the Apostolic Faith work, and pastor of the headquarters church in Portland, Oregon.