Psalm 139: 13-16
13For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
It’s my choice. I could go on and on pouting and complaining about what I do not have, wish I did and may never get to have or, I can decide to deliberately focus on what I know I have and concentrate on using my gifts and skills to the best of God’s grace working in me, within the windows of opportunity opened up for me.
My prayer: Father, please don’t allow me waste away. Help me identify what is unique about me – that ability that uniquely identifies me. Help me be myself and still live to glorify you.
What makes the horse stand out? Yes, its looks but not just that, its ability to run and travel a long distance as well as the ability to face fear and never quiver.
What is unique about the Camel?
It’s ability to survive harsh conditions.
What makes the Elephant stand out? The sheer size and ability to pull its weight against any obstacle.
See the uniqueness of these creatures as God describes in Job 39: 5- 25;
5 “Who let the wild donkey go free?
Who untied its ropes?
6 I gave it the wasteland as its home,
the salt flats as its habitat.
7 It laughs at the commotion in the town;
it does not hear a driver’s shout.
8 It ranges the hills for its pasture
and searches for any green thing.
9 “Will the wild ox consent to serve you?
Will it stay by your manger at night?
10 Can you hold it to the furrow with a harness?
Will it till the valleys behind you?
11 Will you rely on it for its great strength?
Will you leave your heavy work to it?
12 Can you trust it to haul in your grain
and bring it to your threshing floor?
“The wings of the ostrich flap joyfully,
though they cannot compare
with the wings and feathers of the stork.
14 She lays her eggs on the ground
and lets them warm in the sand,
15 unmindful that a foot may crush them,
that some wild animal may trample them.
16 She treats her young harshly, as if they were not hers;
she cares not that her labor was in vain,
17 for God did not endow her with wisdom
or give her a share of good sense.
18 Yet when she spreads her feathers to run,
she laughs at horse and rider.
19 “Do you give the horse its strength
or clothe its neck with a flowing mane?
20 Do you make it leap like a locust,
striking terror with its proud snorting?
21 It paws fiercely, rejoicing in its strength,
and charges into the fray.
22 It laughs at fear, afraid of nothing;
it does not shy away from the sword.
23 The quiver rattles against its side,
along with the flashing spear and lance.
24 In frenzied excitement it eats up the ground;
it cannot stand still when the trumpet sounds.
25 At the blast of the trumpet it snorts, ‘Aha!’
It catches the scent of battle from afar,
the shout of commanders and the battle cry.”
God blessed every creature with something unique by which they are distinguished.
Notice that doing these things come naturally with these creatures. They do not struggle being themselves, neither do they try to copy other animals. They never compete against another specie. They are comfortable in their own skins and being what God made them to be. They are known for what they do.
You will be known and rewarded for what you do and your unique way of doing them.
What comes naturally to you? God wants to help you pick that up and make it a channel of supernatural blessing to others. God may also be prompting you to try something new and since He’s put it in you to do, He will help you succeed.
My prayer: Lord help me be open to you. Help me be sensitive to your Spirit. Help me to be obedient to your instructions and when I am going off track, please nudge me back on course.
Stay on the winning track.
Shalom
‘Laolu Oyeyemi
Apathy, doubt, procrastination, indecision, ‘maybes’, ‘what-ifs’ and ‘impossible’ are children of the same parents, Mr. Fear and Mrs. ‘Laid-Back’.