I think it would be safe to say that most of us have a hard time accepting certain aspects of who we are. Whether that is certain body features, or our personalities, or perhaps a learning disability that we struggle with, we wish we were not limited in the way we are. We tend to be our own worst critic at times and struggle to accept ourselves as we really are. In light of this, many Christians over the centuries have found the words of Psalm 139:13-16 (and the Psalm as a whole) to be very comforting.

“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.”

How amazing to think that out of almost 7 billion people who live on this earth, God created each one of us as David explains, “fearfully and wonderfully.” God didn’t make any mistakes when he formed and made me. I am exactly how God wants me to be and so are you! When we have difficulty accepting ourselves for the way God has made us, then that means we have a problem with God. Now that’s a different way of looking at things, isn’t it? If God created us and if we really believe that He doesn’t make mistakes, then who are we to question God? I realize that it is easier to know this than to truly accept it and even rejoice in the way God has made us.

What is so great about Psalm 139 is that not only does it remind Christians that God made us, but it reminds us that God has a plan for our lives. He has mapped out the days of our lives and intends to use us for the glory of His name. God told Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” (Jeremiah 1:5) If we constantly dwell on all our limitations and wonder why God didn’t make us a certain way, then we will never be as effective as we could be. But when we understand that God gave us gifts and talents and abilities to use for His divine purposes, then we are free to be who we were created to be. What we need to do is to thank God for making us just the way we are and ask Him to use us for His great glory.