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1 You have searched me, LORD, and you know me. 2 You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. 3 You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. 4 Before a word is on my tongue you, LORD, know it completely. 5 You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me. 6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. 13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. 16 Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. 17 How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them! 18 Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand— when I awake, I am still with you. (Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18 NIV)
Dear Friend, if you've never lived out of state, you owe it to yourself not to. Okay, I jest. I blame God, I mean, I thank God, for leading me out of Texas into the wilds of Colorado back in the day. Not black and white days but you could see them from there. The days then were so different from today. Not necessarily simple, but not yet complex. I had been hiding from God, thinking I was useless in His plan, but true to His nature I got a letter from my scholarship program in New York that I was still a Crusade Scholar in the United Methodist Church and could return to seminary if I wanted. I tossed that letter aside and the very next day, the next day! I get a letter from a seminary of the UMC kind, in Denver, saying they learned I still had a Crusade Scholarship and if I wanted to resume my seminary education I did not have to apply for admission, just call their number and I was in! Wait. What? This is God we're talking about; and I, of course, dialed the number and became immediately a student at Iliff School of Theology, and I resigned my high paying job at Southwestern Bell Telephone in Houston. God had been with me the whole time I was hiding and God knew my thoughts, doubts, fears, worries about me being a minister. And this came as an affirmation that said loudly, "I still believe in you; you can do it; just come back." Oh, David had it right when he wrote, "Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain." I soon found myself in the Mile High City, enjoying nose bleed reminders that this South Texas boy was not made for high altitude cities. And when homesick for some Mexican food, I kid you not, I was sitting in a so-called Mexican restaurant watching in horror as the waitress brought me a bowl of Fritos and catsup. I'm not lying! Gulp. This was 1975 Denver. I've been back since and have been blessed to find that my people have found their way there and have changed the cuisine culture for the better.
In a world where we often feel anonymous, overlooked, or misunderstood, Psalm 139 offers us one of the most intimate portraits of God's relationship with us. David begins with a stunning declaration: "You have searched me, Lord, and you know me." This isn't the casual knowledge of an acquaintance or even the deep familiarity of a close friend. This is the complete, perfect knowledge of the One who made us.
God knows when you sit and when you rise. He perceives your thoughts from afar. He's familiar with all your ways. Before a word is on your tongue, He knows it completely. (Quit thinking that Santa Claus song! It's too early for Christmas!) This isn't surveillance—it's love so deep and personal that it encompasses every detail of your existence.
Sometimes this level of divine attention can feel overwhelming, even uncomfortable. We're used to hiding parts of ourselves, editing our image, presenting our best face to the world. But with God, there's no hiding, no pretending, no need to perform. He sees it all—and loves you anyway.
"Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain." David acknowledges that being fully known by God is beyond human comprehension. How can we wrap our minds around a love that knows our darkest thoughts and deepest fears yet never withdraws?
This complete knowledge might terrify us if we didn't understand the heart behind it. But this isn't the cold observation of a distant deity—it's the tender attention of a loving Father who delights in His children. Every detail He knows about you is held with care, not judgment.
Being fully known means you never have to wonder if God understands your struggles. He knows the weight you carry that others can't see. He knows the battles you fight in private. He knows the dreams that seem impossible and the fears that keep you awake at night. And in knowing all of this, He loves you completely.
The psalm shifts from God's knowledge of our present to His involvement in our past: "For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb." The imagery is breathtaking—God as the master craftsman, carefully knitting together every fiber of your being, attending to every detail with the skill of the ultimate artisan.
You are not an accident, a mistake, or a random collection of atoms. You are a deliberate creation, crafted by the hands of the Almighty with intentionality and love. Every aspect of who you are—your personality, your gifts, your struggles, even your quirks—were woven together by God Himself. I believe you were made for a purpose, great or small, but important to God, so live up to it or work yourself up to it!.
"I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made." The word "fearfully" doesn't mean with fear, but with awe—you are awesomely made. You are a wonder, a marvel, a testament to God's incredible creativity and skill. When you look in the mirror, you're looking at one of God's masterpieces.
In a culture obsessed with self-improvement and comparison, this psalm offers a radical perspective. You don't need to become wonderful—you already are wonderful. You don't need to earn God's attention—you already have it completely. You don't need to make yourself loveable—you are already deeply loved.
This doesn't mean we become complacent or stop growing. Rather, it means we grow from a place of acceptance rather than desperation, from love rather than lack. When you know you're fearfully and wonderfully made, you're free to become who God created you to be without trying to become someone else.
The psalm challenges our tendency toward self-criticism and comparison. When you catch yourself focusing on your flaws, remember that you're critiquing God's handiwork. When you wish you were different, you're questioning the wisdom of the One who formed you with perfect intentionality.
"How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand—when I awake, I am still with you." God's thoughts toward you are not occasional or fleeting—they are constant, precious, and countless.
Imagine trying to count the grains of sand on every beach, in every desert, on the ocean floor. It's impossible. That's how often God thinks about you. You are never far from His mind, never forgotten, never overlooked. Even when you sleep, His loving thoughts toward you continue.
This means that in your darkest moment, when you feel most alone, God is thinking about you. When you feel forgotten by the world, you are remembered by the One who matters most. When you question your worth, remember that you occupy the thoughts of the Creator of the universe.
Understanding God's intimate knowledge and love transforms how we live. When you know you're fearfully and wonderfully made, you stop apologizing for taking up space. When you understand that God's thoughts toward you outnumber the sand, you stop begging for His attention—you already have it.
This knowledge frees you to take risks, to be vulnerable, to step into the fullness of who God created you to be. You don't have to hide your authentic self or pretend to be someone you're not. The God who knows everything about you delights in who you are, not who you're trying to become.
You can rest in the security of being fully known and completely loved. You can find confidence not in your performance but in your position as God's beloved creation. You can face each day knowing that the One who formed you is with you, thinking about you, caring for you in ways too wonderful to fully comprehend.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank You for knowing me completely and loving me perfectly. Thank You for the incredible truth that I am fearfully and wonderfully made by Your own hands. Help me to see myself through Your eyes rather than through the lens of comparison or criticism. When I feel unknown or forgotten, remind me that Your thoughts toward me outnumber the grains of sand. When I question my worth or purpose, help me remember that You knit me together with perfect intentionality. Give me the confidence that comes from being fully known and completely loved. Help me live as someone who truly believes they are Your masterpiece. Free me from the need to earn Your love or prove my worth—I already have both in abundance. May the security of Your love transform how I see myself and how I relate to others. Thank You that when I awake each morning, I am still with You, held in Your loving thoughts and surrounded by Your presence. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! OUR CALL TO ACTION: When negative self-talk arises, remind yourself that you're critiquing God's handiwork and choose instead to thank Him for the specific ways He has crafted you uniquely and purposefully.
I love you and I thank God for you!
Pastor Eradio Valverde, Jr.
