¹³ For You formed my inward parts;
You covered me in my mother’s womb.
¹⁴ I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well.
¹⁵ My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
¹⁶ Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
The days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them.

¹⁷ How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
How great is the sum of them!
¹⁸ If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand;
When I awake, I am still with You.  Psalm 139:13-18 (NKJV)

The other evening I was scanning the channels on our TV to see if there was anything interesting to watch.   I suddenly stopped scanning when a show caught my eye.  I heard part of a conversation of two young ladies.  One of the young ladies told the other that for her birthday she was going to buy her breast implants because – “ It will make her feel better about herself and bring her more confidence.”   The other girl squealed in total excitement, “My life will be so much better!”

How sad is that?  To think that changing one’s appearance in hope that it will make one feel better as well as her life will be much better!   It’s so disturbing to think that thousands of young ladies might have heard this conversation and wonder if they changed something about themselves that it will make their life better.

Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong about changing your appearance especially if one is overweight and needs to lose a few pounds or more.  We all know that being overweight is hard on our bodies and not healthy.   What disturbed me was that they believe changing oneself on the outside would make life better for them.  I don’t fault these young ladies at all – let’s face it – we see these messages all the time on TV, movies, magazines etc….   If you are skinny enough, cute enough, tall enough, and rich enough, etc… you will be popular and successful in life.  They do not understand that one can change everything external about them but if they do not make the right changes within themselves it will all be totally superficial!

How heartrending that they do not realize that God made them and loves them just the way He created them.  Too many people think that if they change the outside it is what they need when actually it’s the inside – their heart – that needs to be changed – to be right with the Lord!

³ Don’t put your confidence in powerful people;
there is no help for you there.
⁴ When they breathe their last, they return to the earth,
and all their plans die with them.
⁵ But joyful are those who have the God of Israel as their helper,
whose hope is in the Lord their God.   Psalm 146:3-5 (NLT)

Dear Lord may we as mothers, grandmothers, sisters, aunts and friends teach our young girls the meaning of true beauty and true happiness.  May we set an example for all young ladies we come in contact with each day.  May we not be so obsessed about our “outside” shell that we too send the wrong message to our young ladies.  May we be examples of true beauty – life in Christ.  In Jesus precious name, amen.

[15] For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, [16] I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, [17] that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, [18] having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, [19] and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might [20] that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, [21] far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. [22] And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, [23] which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
(Ephesians 1:15-23 ESV)

When the verse above was originally written it was written as a single sentence in the original Greek language.

This is one of my favorite passages because when I am without words to pray. If someone is going through a tough time or a time of confusion, I always turn this passage into a prayer.

As Christians we are responsible to pray for others:

1. Pray for their future hope.
2. Pray for God’s inheritance in other Christians. This means God’s inheritance of all the Christians that will spend eternity with Him.
3. Pray they realize and utilize the power they have in Christ.

It is easy as Christians to forget all we have access to: “immeasurable greatness”, “great might” and God “working” in us.

Just as Ephesians 6 explains when, how, and for whom to pray for. This first chapter in Ephesians reminds us that we need to encourage and remind other Christians they have a great God working through them.

As Christians we all need encouragement, it is a daily struggle to stay on the right path, so if you fail to find the right words use Paul’s words to the Ephesians.

Heavenly Father:

For this reason, because I have heard of these women’s faith in the Lord Jesus and their love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for each one of them, remembering them in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give each one a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of their hearts enlightened, that they may know what is the hope to which he has called each one of you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

Amen

Are you at a crossroads in your life?  Maybe it’s a fork in the road and big life changing decisions you have to make about marriage, jobs, children, moving, etc.  Maybe you have just graduated and are starting a new life on your own.  As you look at the path in front of you, where does it lead?  How can you be sure it will lead you to your promised land, the place of your dreams, the spiritual place of contentment?

Here’s a few things I see that the Israelites did wrong that led them to a 40 year wandering time before they finally received God’s gift of peace to them.

First, they didn’t dream big enough. They saw the big clusters of fruit in the land and they thought it looked beautiful and wonderful, but they couldn’t imagine how they would defeat those “giants” in the land.  They didn’t believe their God was big enough to tackle seemingly insurmountable odds.  I wonder how many of us limit God’s work in our lives by this type of thinking.  When they started to dream big and put their trust in a BIG God, that’s when walls started to fall down and rivers began to part before their very eyes.

Second, they didn’t stay true to their values. They let emotions rule them as they succumbed to whining, complaining, impatience and finally relying on other gods when the One True God wasn’t working the way they wanted Him to.   So often, I rely on my emotions instead of the TRUTH (the Way and the Life), and instead of letting God’s Word be my solid foundation.  When we let emotions guide our decisions, we don’t always choose according to values, but what “feels good” and whatever is easiest.  Ultimately, that path leads to death, while the path of obedience and hard choices leads to life.  Moses made sure they knew that they had a choice to make and that their decisions would have lasting consequences.  What feels good today may have the potential to change your life forever.  So, choose wisely.

Third, they were selfish. They wanted to have all the comforts of life and they wanted it NOW!  They were only thinking about the moment and about their own pleasure.  As a result, they didn’t get along with each other and they didn’t see how they might play a part in a bigger plan.  When we get our eyes off ourselves and look out into the world with a vision to serve, we can team up with God and work with Him fulfilling His purposes.  When our lives are only about what is best for us individually, we miss the opportunity to be a part of something that really matters, something that has eternal value.  Those selfish Israelites died in the desert, never seeing what God had planned for them or how He would use the nation of Israel to bless the world.

I want to be someone who gets involved with what really matters and to do that, I need to get my eyes off of myself and I need to trust in a BIG God who can fulfill BIG dreams.  And ultimately, I need to make everyday choices that honor Him and put Him at the center of my life where He can work miracles.  I’m choosing to take the path that leads to a Promised Future.  How about you?

Cartoon used with permission:  (Copyright Gospel Communications International, Inc – www.reverendfun.com)