Psalm 139 retold — Cara Heafey, Oxford UK

African Beauty in opalstone by Peter Kanjani, Artpeace cooperative, Zimbabwe

When I wrote this I had in mind LGBT Christians who may have been wounded by the church.

Cara Heafey

I made you myself, carefully and lovingly.
I gathered your molecules together,
Scooping them out of the dust, warming them into clay.

I formed you, deftly
With the skill and vision of an artist
Into a unique creation.
A tiny masterpiece.

Your contours bear the imprint of my fingers.
Your imperfections and irregularities are a part of my design;
They are what make you beautiful.

I breathed life into you with my own breath.

To behold what I have brought into being in you
fills me with pleasure and pride.
As I cradle you in cupped hands, how could I feel anything but love?
It is my love for you that brought you into existence.

I know you more intimately than you could ever know yourself.
I know your thoughts before you think them, your words before you speak them,
The pattern and purpose of your days before you live them.

There is no point in hiding or pretending; don’t even try.

Who told you that I did not love you?
Who taught you to be ashamed?
Listen to me. Hear the very words that I whispered into you
At the moment of your beginning:

“You are my beloved child, with you I am well pleased.
You are my beloved child, I will never let you go.
You are my beloved child; do not be afraid.”

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