Searching for significance in all the wrong places

"See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands ... " Isaiah 49:16a

I've always been intrigued by that verse in Isaiah. God has engraved me on the palms of his hands.

Imagine that.

There's something extremely personal about being engraved on God's hands. It makes me feel as if I am being held by him every minute of every day.

There's something purposeful about engraving someone on your hands too. God didn't write my name on his hands in ball point pen. He didn't sketch a picture of me with a Sharpie. The Hebrew word for "engrave" means to cut or to inscribe or to set.

For God to engrave me on the palms of his hands, he had to be intentional--and it sounds painful too. It cost God something.

The verse is in a chapter in Isaiah where Israel is feeling forgotten and forsaken by God. And God answers by saying he cannot forget his people. He proves it by holding out his hands.

Just Thinking Out Loud: The next time I'm struggling with feeling insignificant, maybe I should stop looking at all the things I'm doing to prove I'm worth something to somebody--anybody. Maybe this Accidental Pharisee should look at the palms of her God's hands.