Bible Society of South Africa

In step with God: Revere our Creator - 19 January 2024

By Louise Gevers

Um(Imi)bhalo weBhayibheli

Ihubo 139

13Ngokuba wena uzenzile izinso zami,

wangaluka esiswini sikamame.

Ihubo 139:13ZUL59NOVula kumfundi weBhayibheli

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”, (Genesis 1:1) and everything in them, but the pinnacle of his creation came last: humankind – us – created in God’s own image; unique, spiritual, products of his miracle of conception through which his imprint is on every person, for all time. How astounding is that!

Do we ever stop to marvel at how we actually came to be, or wonder at our uniqueness? Do we look up to something beyond our own understanding, and open our minds, in wonder, to the complexity of a baby beginning life in its mother’s womb – or to ourselves in our mother’s womb – placed there by God – and say, “How great you are!”

Creation is sacred, not just a ‘natural process’ that will produce a baby in the right conditions using certain ingredients and a recipe, as we would bake a cake. Without God, and His miraculously intricate design right from the start there would be no life – just raw ingredients – but amazingly, He breathes life into us.

In the verse today, the psalmist speaks poignantly of God tenderly knitting him together, giving him life, seeing his unformed body in the darkness of his mother’s womb; something wonderful and secret, exclusive to God, long before scans were ever thought of. David’s awe, and awareness of God’s profound impact on his life from conception reflect the depth of his relationship with God, and undergird his hope in his Creator.

When we’re in step with the God who saw us from the beginning, “when (our) bones were being formed, carefully put together in (our) mother’s womb,” (Psalm 139:15 ) every new day is an awesome adventure as we discover more about him and his intimate knowledge of us. He is the One we can’t escape from, because even though we can’t see him, (Psalm 139:7) he is everywhere, and is always there to help and lead us (Psalm 139:10); for Him, “the night is as light as the day.” (Psalm 139:12)

It’s actually difficult to understand why we wouldn’t want to be in relationship with Him, growing in knowledge and understanding. He is key to all of life, but also the key to our own life from that first miraculous moment, until we have lived out, “the days allotted to [us that have] all been recorded in [his] book.” (Psalm 139:16)

The more we get in step with our Creator, the more we realise just how much he is everything we need, and we learn to trust him with everything.

Prayer: Loving Creator God, we praise you for creating us and for your loving care for each one of us. “Your knowledge of me is too deep; it is beyond my understanding.” (Psalm 139:6) Help me to know you more intimately as you lead me each day. Amen

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