You Were Planned By God
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness…”
Genesis 1:26
God has created some pretty amazing things! If you’ve ever seen the spectacle that is a blue whale bursting up out of the ocean, high into the sky, and then slamming right back into the vortex it just made, you can appreciate its size! It’s massive! Being the world’s largest animal, it could easily crush a small boat if it landed on it after doing what is called, cetacean behavior, or surface breaching. (That cool thing it does when it jumps out of the water!)
A blue whale can weigh as much as half a million pounds! A baby blue whale gains up to a ton of weight in a month! That makes me feel better after gaining a few pounds each weekend. The heart of an adult male can tip the scales at over 1,000 pounds! And the length of a full grown blue whale can span three buses! That’s huge!
On the very opposite “size side” of the animal kingdom is a mammal that could easily be mistaken for an overgrown bumblebee. The hog-nosed bat is the smallest recorded animal on the planet. If you walked into a cave full of these little bats, you’d think you just stirred up a hornet’s nest! They are so small that when it rains it’s hard for them to fly. That’s really small!
But what I think is the most amazing thing about both of these animals—what’s most intriguing—is that God thought of both of them. They were God’s ideas! And He didn’t just think up how different their sizes would be, but also, their bone structure, what cells would make up their bone structure, how they’d look, what they’d like to eat, so on an so forth—GOD THOUGHT OF THAT!
God loves variety! No two things are the same! Even twins, their genetic make-up which matches, still can’t produce two of the exact same people. They have different souls and spirits. They have different likes, styles, hobbies, personalities, and goals. God wanted to make all of us different, He planned it this way.
What baffles my mind is that the very same God who thought of and created enormous blue whales and tiny hog-nosed bats, He thought of you and me too. He even planned us before He created this vast universe! (See Ephesians 1:4). He personally stitched us together in our mother’s wombs! (See Psalm 139:13).
However, the most exciting news, the very thing that should make you feel absolutely spectacular is this: you are His most prized possession! Out of all of His creations, from the sun, the planets, and the stars, to the fish in the sea, the birds of the sky, and the lions of the Serengeti—even compared to the biggest mountains, lush rainforests, and vast deserts—YOU ARE HIS MASTERPIECE! (See Ephesians 2:10). He created all of this for you to enjoy with Him!
So today, my friends, know this: By simply placing your faith in Jesus, you can begin to enjoy this relationship right now; a relationship so great, God just had to create you!
A prayer for you: Good morning, Father! Wow! What a beautiful, crisp morning you’ve given me! Thank you! Thank you for the sound of the birds! Thank you for the good health you’ve given me! Right now, I lift up all who are reading this, directly to you. I ask that you help them to understand why you created them, which is to have a loving relationship with you. Teach us more about your unconditional love through Jesus Christ! Amen.
This devotional is from 60 Days for Jesus, Volume 3. Get your copy here!