Discovering Who I Am

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
The moon and the stars, which You have ordained,
What is man that You are mindful of him,
And the son of man that You visit him?
–Psalm 8:3-4

When David wrote this Psalm, he must have been gazing up into the heavens on a clear night, struck by the beauty and complexity of creation. David may have been able to count 1,500 stars with his naked eye, yet we now know that there are an estimated 100 billion stars in our home galaxy, the Milky Way, and there are another estimated 100 billion galaxies, each with an estimated 100 billion stars!

“What is man, that You are mindful of him?” The answer to this question seems less and less likely to be found with each step we take into the limitless expanse of the universe. The more we know about the intricacies and complexities of the human body; with each new discovery and small advance of science; with each new sunset and flower blossom, the mystery of why God pursues man becomes more difficult to fathom.

Psalm 40:5 says that God’s thoughts towards you and I are too numerous to count, and they are all good. Jeremiah 29:11 says that God’s thoughts for us are of peace, to give us a future and a hope. He knew you and I and had planned out our unique personality and gifting from before time began. If you are like me, you have a hard time accepting these facts. After all, we know our failings and short-comings. I find it hard to believe that God feels good about me because I don’t feel good about myself.

The difference is that God separates our behavior from our identity. He knows who He created you to be and that you do not cease to be what He created just because you might sin at times. You and I would do well to take the lead of the creator of the universe and agree with Him about who we are. When you get under a load of self-condemnation, do you stop and check it with God before you buy it? You might be surprised by the freedom He gives you to decline carrying such burdens.

“Blessed are they
whose transgressions are forgiven,
whose sins are covered.
Blessed is the man
whose sin the Lord will never count against him.”
–Romans 4:7-8