INTRODUCTION

Take a moment to marvel at the creativity of God’s creation. The Bible speaks of multiple ways that God has created life – Calling the plants and and animals into being (Genesis 1:11-25); Forming Adam out of dust (Genesis 2:7); Fashioning Eve out of Adam’s rib (Genesis 2:21-22); Birth of Jesus from a virgin, the Word becoming flesh (John 1:13).

Your individual story of creation is no less miraculous. The gift of life is never an accident. Even before we existed as an embryo, God knew you and already had a plan and purpose for you. (Jeremiah 1:5).

You are a unique creation. There is no one like you that has come before, and no one like you that will come after. You were made not with carelessness but with wonder and set apart from all others by God. (Psalm 139)

If you believe this is your origin story, your identity must be found in conforming to what God created you to be.

DISCUSSION

1. We often do not appreciate the value of a life until we are faced with the prospect of losing it. If you had 24 hours left on this Earth, what would you do?

   a. How does your answer reflect what you find meaningful about your life?

   b. What would it look like if you re-ordered how you live your life today according to these priorities? 

2. A strong identity is often associated with a strong sense of belonging as well as a strong sense of purpose. In other words, knowing where you come from and where you are heading gives direction to where you are in your journey right now.

   Read Psalm 139.

   From v1-18

   a. How do you feel as you read these verses? Why might you feel the way you do?

   b. Where does knowledge of ourselves come from? Can it be attained, and if so, how?

   c. Why might we run away from who God wants us to be? How do we return?

   From v19-24

   d. Even though we know that God has demonstrated His love for us in His creation of us, David here writes of times when we seem to experience His absence. What can we learn from him in his response?

   e. The psalm was written for the director of music and the people of Israel, despite being a reflection of a private struggle. What might this tell us about how we should communicate the seeds of God’s Kingdom?

WHAT WILL YOU DO

If you can accept that God knows you better than you know yourself, would you ask God to reveal enough of this knowledge to you to guide your steps? Would you:

• Draw closer to those God has placed around us
• Reflect God’s character 
• Communicate/declare God’s Kingdom 

Empirically, we can only ever speak from our personal experience of God. Evidentially, what we say about our experience can only be supported by the transformation of our lives. Evangelism then flows from our reflection of God’s character.

MEMORY VERSE

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 139:16 (ESV)