During the early part of the 1980s, I had been ‘taken in’ by the Jewell family in Oklahoma City. They were amazing friends and selfless mentors. John and Linda already had two sons and during this time, soon found they were expecting another child.
This was my first real exposure to the truth about life beginning at conception. Here was a woman I respected and spent much time with, carrying a brand new life inside of her. As we prayed over the child John and Linda introduced me to the concept of speaking to the child even before birth.
As I had been learning to do, I asked the Lord for a song for the family - for the new baby. That song became Fearfully and Wonderfully Made. The song came as I meditated on this new little life, yet to be born. I also contemplated my own identity and destiny as if that little life were a representation of my life before God…and this song came…for Adam Jewell…a gift to him and to his family while waiting for his birth…
LORD, You have searched me and known [me.]
You know when I sit down and when I get up;
You understand my thought from far away.
You scrutinize my path and my lying down,
And are acquainted with all my ways.
Even before there is a word on my tongue,
Behold, LORD, You know it all.
You have encircled me behind and in front,
And placed Your hand upon me.
[Such] knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is [too] high, I cannot comprehend it.
Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, You are there;
If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there.
[If] I take up the wings of the dawn,
[If] I dwell in the remotest part of the sea,
Even there Your hand will lead me,
And Your right hand will take hold of me.
[If] I say, "Surely the darkness will overwhelm me,
And the light around me will be night,"
Even darkness is not dark to You,
And the night is as bright as the day.
Darkness and light are alike [to You.]
For You created my innermost parts;
You wove me in my mother's womb.
I will give thanks to You, because I am awesomely and wonderfully [made;]
Wonderful are Your works,
And my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from You
When I was made in secret,
[And] skillfully formed in the depths of the earth;
Your eyes have seen my formless substance;
And in Your book were written
All the days that were ordained [for me,]
When as yet there was not one of them.
How precious also are Your thoughts for me, God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them, they would outnumber the sand.
When I awake, I am still with You.
Psalm 139:1-18 NASB
The words of this Psalm are condensed into the song and the song lyrics are intended to express the massive love Father God has for us and how He takes delight in knowing us. Do we take delight in knowing Him?
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. Ephesians 2:10 NASB
Need I say more? We are made in the image of our Father God. Because we are new creations in Christ, we have His spiritual DNA running through our spiritual veins. We are like our Father. Let us stop believing the lies of the enemy that constantly try to condemn us and confuse us. God’s Word says that as a man or woman thinks in their heart so he or she is. Let’s be who our Father says we are today. Let’s believe He loves us and openly receive that love.
Dennis Jernigan
To hear The Dennis Jernigan Podcast version of this blog and to hear the song, Fearfully and Wonderfully Made, go to http://podcast.dennisjernigan.com/e/fearfully-and-wonderfully-made/
Photo courtesy of https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2018/01/31/09/42/people-3120717_1280.jpg