Bible Readings
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. (Genesis 1:27)
But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand. (Isaiah 64:8)
For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them. (Psalm 139:13-16)
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:10)
Thought
This evening the 100th episode of ‘The Great British Bake Off’ will be aired. Like many other people I have watched them all. I really enjoy baking, especially when there is no time pressure and when the only people who are going to judge my baking are those who love me and appreciate whatever I do. I would not wish to be on ‘The Bake Off’ where pressures of time and judgement are part of the very fabric of the competition. I have however been inspired this year to have a go at baking bread. Bread week was a couple of weeks ago and the contestants started by baking soda bread. As I watched I thought to myself that I could have a go at that, it didn’t seem too hard and it wasn’t. A couple of satisfactory loaves later I decided to have a go at what I would classify as ‘real’ bread, the kind of bread that requires yeast and kneading and proving and then more kneading and more proving before any baking is actually done. So last week I baked a wholemeal loaf. I followed the recipe to the letter, weighing out my ingredients with care and double checking what I should be doing. The ‘slightly sticky dough’ of the recipe turned out to be a very sticky dough which stuck to everything but the end result was very pleasing. The final loaf looked good and more importantly it tasted good.
Baking bread is a slow process and gives you plenty of time to think. While baking I thought about the fact that I was created by the most incredible creator that there is. Not only did God create each one of us but he created us in his own image. In Psalm 139 the psalmist praises God because he knows that he is fearfully and wonderfully made. Each one of us is able to join the psalmist in praise of our creator.
Not only have we been created by God, but he gave us the ability to create. Whether it is creating a beautiful garden, or a piece of art, or a loaf of bread, each of us has the ability to create.
We often look at nature to see the hand of God at work, we look at mountains or lakes, or at trees or animals but surely we need to look no further than at each other. We were all created by God, each of us different, and we should marvel at his wonderful creation. So when you look in the mirror say to yourself ‘I am fearfully and wonderfully made by God’. And when you see another person remember that they too are God’s creation fearfully and wonderfully made by him.
Prayer
Creator God
We praise you for your creation, we marvel at the works of your hand. Help us to see you in all the people that we meet.
Amen
Song: The Father’s Song (Redman)