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Obedience and Surrender

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From the Editor From the Editor

Lessons on the Wall

By Darla Knoth

Two sets of photographs hang on my family room wall. The middle photo in each set is a photo of my parents' families. Photos of my grandparents' families accompany those middle photos. By looking at these photos of six families in all, I see my parents, all my aunts and uncles, all my great-grandparents, great-aunts and great-uncles. Many times I've wondered about each of their lives, how God brought them together, how they lived, and how I came to be through these people, my ancestors. From these photos on the wall, I've learned some lessons.

From genealogy study I discovered that if the information could have been preserved, any one person could trace their ancestry back four to five hundred generations.

An unnamed theologian notes that for a child to survive infant mortality, plagues, famines and a myriad of other hardships to reach adulthood is also an incredible feat. Your ancestors were survivors, passing on their life from one generation to the next. Think of all the people who survived, married, and had children, before you could be born. The life given to you is miraculous! Remember this the next time you feel meaningless.

In his book, Invisible Imprint, Dr. Richard Dobbins shares that the chance of you being born the person you are on your mother's side alone is one in 1.5 million. The chance on your father's side is one in 150 to 300 million.

Psalm 139:13-16 verifies these staggering odds by saying "You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb . . . When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be."

One commentary notes this verse does not only refer to our actual days, but also to the plan God has for our lives as a whole. When I look at the photos on my wall, God speaks to my heart. He says, "I really do have a purpose for your life!"

You may not be able to locate actual photos of your ancestors, but these same statistics apply to you. Your life is a miracle. God created you for a reason and a purpose.

When you reflect on the odds of you being born the person you are, then reflect on the abilities God has given you, and what an incredibly omnipotent, omniscient God we serve, the possibilities for ministry through your life can be more than you imagined!

Find the purpose He created you for, and watch Him work through you today.

Darla KnothDARLA KNOTH serves as Managing Editor for the national Women’s Ministries Department. She has experience in editing, publishing and overseeing the publications staff of Women’s Ministries, as well as serving as an adjunct faculty member at Evangel University.

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