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The words from Psalm 139 hung in the stillness of the air – and in my heart. I felt the tension as I held up a hand-painted coffee cup.

“We are marvelously made. Fearfully and wonderfully made – like this cup. Designed perfectly to hold beverages, adorned with flowers. Lovely. Someone thought of this cup, its design. Determined how it should be shaped, how it would be cradled in someone’s hand, where its handle should go. How much liquid it would hold. And that someone then took that thought and made the cup. The cup is the craftsman’s worksmanship. Created with a purpose. Just like you. Just like me.”

The faces smiled, and I took another breath. I reached for the hammer.

“But what happens when the fearfully and wonderfully made is broken?”

And for the first time in public – to a room of strangers, I named the breaks in the cup that was me.

I’m sharing the rest of the story – about the breaks and about living in the tension of God’s sovereignty – at my friend, Elora Nicole’s blog. You can find it here. And let me know how you wrestle with sovereignty and purpose. I’d love to know.