¹³ For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.  ¹⁴ I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.  ¹⁵ 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.  (Psalm 139:13-15, New International Version)

Theme:  Rejoicing and Thanksgiving

Context:

So far we have considered two important sources of inspiration for prayers of rejoicing and thanksgiving – (1) God, and (2) some of the people in our lives.  Today we conclude with a third source of inspiration – our individual traits. 

It might seem a little vain to rejoice and give thanks for the way we are made but there is no concern when the recipient of our gratitude is God.  In fact, giving thanks for the way God made us is a necessary rejection of the way some people in society assess the worth of individuals.   When we think about things like aging, disabilities, health, or popular standards of beauty and success we may be more inclined to be discouraged about ourselves than to rejoice and give thanks. 

Bible Passage:   

In our passage today, we return to the book of Psalms.  David’s reflection on God’s involvement in his individual traits results in a prayer of praise.  Please study the passage and answer the questions below.       

Questions:

• Clearly the presence of sin means we are not perfect.  In your own words, what was David praising God for in Psalms 139? 
• Do you employ this practice in your prayer life?    

Please leave a comment.  We would love to hear from you.