Our Stories
Fearfully and Wonderfully Made
By Keith Ferrin | posted 03/20/2008
"For You created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well." (Psalm 139:13-14)
I have never been more aware of the truth of these words than I was last week. I was in Kansas City for some speaking engagements and was able to spend time with some good friends while I was there. One of them was my dear friend - and chairman of TYMK Ministries - Scott Rhodes. Friday was one of those incredibly rare days with no agenda. I was in between events, Scott took the day off, and we just hung out.
The day started with a two-hour cup of coffee. Now that's what I call a good start! After that we headed into downtown KC for the grand opening of the traveling exhibit: Bodies Revealed. For those of you who haven't heard of or seen the Bodies exhibits, they will surely change your perspective on your body forever. They use a fascinating process - that I could never fully explain - to preserve muscles, veins, organs, bones, etc. so that what you're looking at are real bodies.
Throughout the course of the exhibit, we marveled at the intricacy of the way nerves wind their way through the body. We squirmed at the displays that showed the effects of cancers and various diseases on organs. I can tell you right now, that if you ever want to keep someone from smoking, just have them stand twelve inches away from a healthy lung and a lung that belonged to a pack-a-day smoker. In fact, in between the two they had a plexiglass box for people to throw away their cigarettes right there on the spot.
We moved on to see exhibits where they had taken a fully-preserved body and cut it in lengthways cross sections. And another that did the same thing but widthways. This gave a perspective on the arrangement and detailed organization of the body that was simply fascinating.
We paused for a particularly long time at the heart display. Since Scott has a son that has been through multiple heart surgeries, he told me all about how they work and could point to all the different parts and what would happen if this or that part didn't work quite right. Quite a bit different than all the heart models in health classes and doctors offices.
I think it was as we were walking away from that exhibit that Scott paused and simply said out loud, "I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made." I could only nod in agreement. In fact, I think both of us said that sentence about every five minutes for the rest of our time in the exhibit (and a few hours afterward).
This truth fully hit home as we spent time in the room dedicated to the growth of a baby in its mother's womb. I could hardly speak as I looked at babies that were days, weeks, and months old. It is simply amazing at how early a fetus looks clearly like a baby. And then came the one with the little placard that read "16 Weeks" on it. I said, "Scott, this is the size of the baby in Kari's belly." We both just stood in marvelous wonder at the miracle that God creates in the womb. I re-experienced that awe this morning as Kari and I went in for an ultrasound and I was able to see our baby moving, kicking, waving and being "woven together."
By the way, the final poster that you see and read as you exit Bodies Revealed is this:
We live in a world surrounded by technology, information, and cement; fast-paced living with little time for reflection. When an illness is severe and our mortality comes into question, we may take the time to stop and ponder our existence, but cured, we are off again; not thinking about the extraordinary, complicated human beings that we are. Our bodies are indeed intricately more complex and wondrous than all of the computers and gadgetry that surround us today. Yet many of us do not really know what lies beneath our skin - how our bodies function, what they need to survive, what destroys them, what revives them.
As I read those words and walked out of the exhibit, I couldn't help but think, That sounds like another way of saying we are fearfully and wonderfully made.
Praise be to the Intricate Artist, the Beautiful Painter, the Grand Architect - the Creator of our bodies and the Lover of our souls. Amen.
In awe of God's handiwork,
Keith
To respond to this message, email Keith at keith@thatyoumayknow.com.
Keith Ferrin is founder of That You May Know Ministries.
