We’re in the thick of Advent, moving slowly toward the celebration of Jesus’s birth. Embracing shadows as we look to Light.

(In case you missed it… Shadow & Light by Tsh Oxenreider is an incredible resource on your “Advent”-ure. Each day has a unique song and piece of artwork to reflect on! You can also check out my four blogs from last year with the four corresponding themes: Hope, Faith, Joy and Peace)

A few months ago I started working through Psalm 139, verse by verse. I got sidetracked along the way, but I hope to return to the studying of it soon.

Until then, I wanted to share a little encouragement from Psalm 139:13-16, in the Message…

“Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother’s womb. I thank you, High God—you’re breathtaking! Body and soul, I am marvelously made! I worship in adoration—what a creation! You know me inside and out, you know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something. Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you, the days of my life all prepared before I’d even lived one day.” – Psalm 139:13-16

I keep coming back to this passage. Honestly, it can be a hard one to receive. I read it again, slowly, trying to trust that what His Word says is true. Believing that my Heavenly Father, my Creator, knew what He was doing when He formed me. That my body and soul are marvelously (and purposefully) made. That He sculpted nothing into something – intentionally, wonderfully.

I keep coming back to these simple truths… He sees me, He hears me, He knows me, He loves me.

And the same is true for you.