This morning I decided to take advantage of a rare occasion of no meetings or urgent responsibilities to go for a quick run after I dropped the kids at school. I started off strong with the wind in my face and a crispness to the air that added a spring to my step and the illusion that I could run for hours. At the midway point, I turned around to head back to my car and faced the realization that the wind was now at my back and what I had considered a ‘crispness to the air’ was actually a thick blanket of fog. It only took me a few steps to realize that the fog was so heavy that it made it difficult to get a full breath. I pushed through for about 10 minutes but was then forced to walk to try to get some much needed oxygen deep into my lungs. About this time, the podcast I had been listening to ended, so I turned on some music to help motivate me to finish the last 10 minutes. The song that came on was “Great Are You Lord” by All Sons And Daughters:

As I focused on getting air into my burning lungs, my ears picked up the words they were singing, “It’s your breath in our lungs, so we pour out our praise to you.” I began to imagine God bending down to breath His life into me and was reminded of the following scripture:

Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. –Genesis 2:7

I’ve read this verse many times and always simply applied it to Adam and Eve. As I ran along the road this morning, struggling to get enough air into my lungs, listening to the words of this song, I was overwhelmed with the image of God breathing His life into ME…giving ME life…forming ME in His image…the very breath I breath is from God.

The podcast I had listened to during the first half of my run was titled “Authentically Me” by Priscilla Shirer. She spoke about how God created each one of us to be unique and to fulfill a specific purpose. I could easily see how the song and the message went hand-in-hand to paint a picture of a loving God who breathed life into every person.

Our daughter came home from preschool last week excited to share with us that they had talked about how they are each “fearfully and wonderfully made.” You could see by the huge smile on her face that this made her feel very special. Not a day has passed since that she hasn’t recited the verse at least once.

 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
    your works are wonderful,
    I know that full well.  —Psalm 139:14

As the song continues, they sing “so we pour out our praise to you.” The very breath of God that gave me life, will be released back to Him in praise. Not praise that we are made perfect or one of us is any better than the other, but pure praise for the love God displayed through His breath of life.