Genesis 1:27 – So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. (NIV)

Tundra, Glacier, and Juneau sit atop a white, furry rug tucked into an old-fashioned, red baby sleigh. These beautiful Inuit babies, all snug in their beaded, fur-trimmed parkas, pants, and boots, look and feel just like the real thing, even though they are only dolls. Designed and handmade by an artist from Alaska, they radiate pride of workmanship, love, and skill. Each one is uniquely different from the other, yet so much alike with their liquid brown eyes, tawny skin, and thick black hair. What a wonderful gift to be able to create such lifelike models of the real thing! What a feeling of fulfillment and joy each one must have brought to the heart of their craftsman!

As I look at these three dolls, I am reminded of the fact that each and every one of us is a miracle, a miracle meant to radiate the pride of workmanship, love, and skill emanating from the likeness of God within us. I am awed by the thought of how God must have felt when He created the first man and woman, and how He must rejoice and be glad beyond comparison each and every time a new baby is conceived, carried to term, and birthed. For He who created our inmost being, He who knit us together in our mother's womb, He who viewed our frame when we were being made in the secret place, He is the one who loves us more than life itself. Therefore, should it not make sense that when we who are created by the Lord God of all creation, choose to accept and love ourselves for the wonderful miracle which we are, this should be one of the greatest praises of all which we can offer up to our heavenly Father? And yet, how often do we despise our humanity, our failures, our bodies, our minds, our personalities, and our genetic makeup? How often do we forget that it was for this that our Saviour died: for fallen, fragile, yet still gloriously God-like humanity?

Today, we each have a brand new opportunity to share in a miracle — the miracle of the creation of us. We have a fresh start to offer God the highest of praises as we choose to embrace the joy He feels in each and every one of us, with whom He shares His life-giving breath. Yes, today we get another chance to praise or reject the workmanship of our Creator's hand. Let us choose wisely.

Prayer: Father God, how fearfully and wonderfully made we are, and for this, we give You thanks and praise. Grant us joy in the life You have breathed into us, that in loving both You and ourselves, we might learn to love our neighbours with increasingly Christ-like fervour. In the wonderful name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.

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About the author:

Lynne Phipps <lynnephippsatlin@gmail.com>
Tawatinaw, Alberta, Canada
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