Fearfully and wonderfully made - what does this mean?

Today, I flipped through my journal that I got from my sister and her husband for Christmas. I was trying to decide in what way I would use this journal - whether I would use it for venting or in another capacity. For those who don't know, I use journalling as a way to process through many things, whether it's day-to-day things, difficult relationships, to review good things, to set goals in life, or to reflect on God, the Bible, theological readings or discussions.

This week, in particular, I've been reflecting a lot on priorities in life and priorities in my work. In some ways, this has been challenging for me, but it's also been encouraging because I've realized that there are others who see things the way I do and want to make changes.

Back to today, I decided to use the journal as a reflective journal in my spiritual life, basing entries on the verses at the bottom of the page. Below is an excerpt from this entry.


"I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made." - Psalm 139:14

Fearfully - reverently, in awe (reverence - a feeling of profound awe and respect and often love; awe - a mixed emotion of reverence, respect, dread, and wonder inspired by authority, genius, great beauty, sublimity, or might)

Wonderfully [wonderful] - capable of eliciting wonder; astonishing; admirable; excellent

Praise - expression of approval, commendation, or admiration; to extol or exalt; worship

So, my paraphrase of this verse is:

I worship God (by expressing my approval and admiration for the way I was made and for who I am) because God created me with awe, love, respect, excellence, and admiration. I meet his approval!

I need to keep this in mind - what it means to praise God for the way he created me. Expressing my approval .... that's tough sometimes. But it's reassuring to know God created me with reverence, wonder, admiration, and that his inspiration included great beauty. And God makes no mistakes!