Day One Hundred Nineteen “Different By Design”
Isaac, the son of promise, knelt before the God of Israel, his heart heavily burdened and confused. The promise of the Messiah had been passed on to him through Abraham, his father, a promise that “in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.” But he had no child. Isaac bowed in prayer daily, beseeching God for an heir to this great promise, “…he intreated the LORD for his wife, because she was barren.” God heard his humble prayer and blessed him doubly, with TWINS! We are told that the unborn sons “…struggled together” within Rebekah, Isaac’s wife, to such a degree that she questioned God “Why am I thus?” His answer to Rebekah serves as a timely reminder to parents today.
Children are uniquely designed, formed by the creative hand of God, for a specific purpose and calling. My eyes well up with tears when I ponder the glorious fact that each of my children was “curiously wrought” by the hands of the Master Craftsman. They were formed “in secret,” “fearfully and wonderfully made,” and “fashioned” to be distinctive, unique creations. He had a purpose in mind for each of them, as he did for the prophets Jeremiah, “Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee…and I ordained thee,” and Isaiah, “The LORD hath called me from the womb,” as he did for those twin sons of Rebekah, “two nations are in thy womb…and the elder shall serve the younger.” Rebekah would give birth to rosy-red, outdoorsy Esau, and stay-at-home, conniving, yet usable, Jacob, both as different physically and spiritually as two brothers could be.
When I look back to my little blessings from God, I can honestly say that God broke the mold on each one of those precious souls, their personalities, gifts, strengths, struggles, and bents different, each emotionally, physically, and spiritually varied and diverse from their siblings. It behooves us as parents to recognize that whether we are blessed with one child, or twenty-one, they are individuals, remarkable in design, specific in purpose. Our mandate is to rear them up to reach their God-given potential, to equip them to fulfill their unique purpose, to encourage those qualities that God placed within them, and to recognize the precious gift that we have on loan from God.
Psalm 139:14 I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.
Thank You, God, for each of the children that have blessed my life. Thank You for their individuality, and for the potential that You have placed within them.
<div class='sharedaddy sd-block sd-like jetpack-likes-widget-wrapper jetpack-likes-widget-unloaded' id='like-post-wrapper-164683012-994-6826caf969d94' data-src='https://widgets.wp.com/likes/?ver=14.5#blog_id=164683012&post_id=994&origin=wp.wordpress.grandmasgleanings.com&obj_id=164683012-994-6826caf969d94' data-name='like-post-frame-164683012-994-6826caf969d94' data-title='Like or Reblog'><h3 class="sd-title">Like this:</h3><div class='likes-widget-placeholder post-likes-widget-placeholder' style='height: 55px;'><span class='button'><span>Like</span></span> <span class="loading">Loading...</span></div><span class='sd-text-color'></span><a class='sd-link-color'></a></div>