Celebrate the Unique You.: Seeing Yourself Through God's Eyes

By Renee LoDolce

You can celebrate what God made you to be.

Have you lost sight of who you are and your unique individualism? Are you caught up in the chaos of life and the role you hold as someones wife, mother, co-worker or church member?

You and so many other women are not alone. Renee has been there and she will show you how to rely on Gods word and help you discover and celebrate the you that God made you to be.

God will reveal Himself to you and you will see how incredibly awesome a designer He is. That awesome designer created YOU! You will grow in the discovery of yourself as well as your Heavenly Creator, and the more you uncover, the more youll want to learn.

God doesnt want your life to be chaotic or routine, instead its to be a celebration, a learning adventure every day, and this book will help you start that journey.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: May 23, 2016
• ISBN: 9781512740899

Renee LoDolce

Renee LoDolce, a Christian homeschool mom of 17 years, is a thought-provoking author and speaker that resonates with thousands of Christian women and Home-School families. She has also written College Out of the Box, a plan to help other students graduate college in less time and with a minimum amount of money. She is never one to follow the crowd and do what others do. She is a lover of education, books, and helping others traverse the “narrow path”. She has been married to her husband, Torre, for over 22 years and they reside in Houston, Texas with their teenage son.

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Copyright © 2016 Renee LoDolce.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide. Used by permission. NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® and NIV® are registered trademarks of Biblica, Inc. Use of either trademark for the offering of goods or services requires the prior written consent of Biblica US, Inc.

WestBow Press

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

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ISBN: 978-1-5127-4090-5 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-4089-9 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2016907404

WestBow Press rev. date: 5/23/2016

Contents

Introduction

Week 1: Uniquely You!

Week 2: What's So Important About A Name?

Week 3: Learning Gratitude, Thankfulness, and Contentment

Week 4: Are You Happy or Joyful?

Week 5: Priorities- What Comes First?

Week 6: Can Cleaning Toilets Be Fulfilling?

Week 7: From Fear to Trust to a Peace That Surpasses All Understanding

Week 8: Are you Out of Order?

Week 9: Need A Rest?

Week 10: Reaching Higher Goals

Week 11: Living by the Promises of God

Week 12: The Ultimate Celebration!

Introduction

I find studying the Bible fascinating -- there is so much there to learn and no matter how many times I read and study, I learn something new. I want to take Bible study on a different course with this class and just open your eyes to a few fun things you can discover within the pages of the Scriptures. Just like God made each of us unique, the Bible is the most unique book in the world (in my opinion). No human could have possibly written such a perfect book. It's a book that touches everyone who reads it right where they are in life and continues to touch them in different ways from that moment on.

Lately I have been so hungry for God's Word that I started doing my own Bible studies (I thrive on digging deep and research and all of that fun stuff!) One night I prayed and asked God if I was to do anything with this love I have of research. The first thing that came to mind was 'Write a Bible study'. Right away I dismissed that idea thinking that there are so many great Bible studies out there, what could I possibly contribute? Was there even a need? God brought to mind the many unhappy women I've been encountering the past year, women longing for something, complaining that they don't even know themselves anymore because they are so caught up in the chaos of life and the roles they hold (as someone's wife, mother, co-worker, church member, etc....). Women who have lost sight of who they are and their unique individualities. Again, I questioned God and said that if this were something He wanted me to do He'd have to open the doors and give me the ideas and specific study that would cater to these women. All I can say is, be careful what you pray for!

Before I was about to drift off to sleep, a flood of ideas began to pour in! I couldn't go to sleep I was so excited! So as not to wake my husband, I went out to the kitchen to jot down all the ideas. Thinking I was through, I went back to bed. God had other plans, however. All in all, I think I traveled to the kitchen 4 -- 5 times that night to write down more ideas. It was approximately 3:30 A.M. before I finally said, That's enough God, I've got to get some sleep (my 2-½ year old son usually wakes me up at 6:30 A.M.). I prayed that since He kept me up He could also give me a supernatural sleep where I'd wake up refreshed the next morning. That morning my son woke me and I was up and raring to go! God is SO good! Just like God makes each snowflake unique, each one of us is infinitely more so. This study is designed to help you discover and celebrate the you that God made you to be. What I find interesting is that as God was revealing this study to me, He showed me that I could do something that is uniquely me. He broke down all my misconceptions of what a Bible study should be and instead let me use all the creativity He gave me to reach out to others in my own way.

My prayer for you is that God will reveal Himself to you and that you will see how incredibly awesome He is and that that awesome designer created YOU! I pray that as you go through the projects you will grow in the discovery of yourself as well as your Heavenly Creator and that the more you uncover, you'll want to learn more. God doesn't want your life to be chaotic or routine. Instead, it's to be a celebration, a learning adventure every day, and I hope to help you start on that journey.

Let's have some fun!

Yours in Christ,

Renee'

Chapter One

Uniquely You!

'I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made!' (PS 139:14)

Question to Ponder:

Do you feel fearfully and wonderfully made? Or do you feel like you're just one of the crowd trying to get through life as someone's wife, mother, friend or co-worker and don't really know who you are in the Lord's eyes? Do you sometimes ask yourself, What's so special about me? or say, I'm not so different than anyone else? Well, I'm here to shout YES YOU ARE! YOU ARE SUPER SPECIAL! And God is shouting it even louder!

Sometimes it gets so easy to get caught up in the day to day things that we totally forget why we are here and Who created us. We look in the mirror and wonder who that person staring back at us is. You may know your husband's favorite activities or your children's favorite books, but not know what your favorites are. In our minds we may consciously tell ourselves that we are special, that we matter, but do you really believe it? Are you too busy caring for everyone else's needs and forgetting that sometimes we just have to take a step back to see not only others through the eyes of God, but ourselves also? Lots of questions to think about aren't there?

Well, this is our chance to learn a little more about ourselves as we grow closer to our Creator. The more we know about God and the closer we get, the more it opens our eyes to who we truly are. We are entwined with God forever: He MADE us. Not only that, He made us in His image. And God definitely did not want us to forget that fact!

In GEN 1:26-27 God repeats over and over how we are created (bara') in His image. Underline every word associated with 'created' or 'made' and circle every 'in His image or likeness' in the following scripture references:

'Then God said, Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground. So God created man in His own image, In the image of God He created him; Male and female He created them.' (GEN 1:26-27)

'Know that the Lord is God. It is He who made us, and we are His; we are His people, the sheep of His pasture.' (PS 100:3)

'Everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.' (IS 43:7)

'This is what the Lord says- He who made you, who formed you in the womb, and who will help you: Do not be afraid' (IS 44:2)

'It is I who made the earth and created mankind upon it.' (IS 45:12)

'Your hands shaped me and made me...Remember that you molded me like clay...you clothed me with skin and flesh and knit me together with bones and sinews. You gave me life and showed me kindness, and in your providence watched over my spirit.' (JOB 10:8-12)

Due to the fact that we have been created by God and in His image, I can tell you that each one of us is unique. How? Well, because God Himself is unique. Put aside the fact that He is one person in a Trinity (I'm sure none of you can claim the same), let's see what the Scriptures say about God:

DT 4:39:

IS 44:6,8:

IS 45:5,18:

1 COR 8:4-6:

EPH 4:4-6:

The very definition of ONE is being a single unit or entity, none other. There is one God, no other, just as there is no one in this whole world just like you. We have the very breath of the One and Only Almighty God in us! (GEN 2:7; also see JOHN 20:21-22) His uniqueness is in us, therefore making each of us unique. You are a one of a kind! Not only that, God knew all about you even before you were born. He had plans for you before He created the world!

'Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,

Before you were born I set you apart;

I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.' (JER 1:5)

'For you created my inmost being;

you knit me together in my mother's womb.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

Your works are wonderful,

I know that full well.

My frame was not hidden from you

When I was made in the secret place.

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.' (PS 139:13-16)

We are NOT here on this earth by mistake! I want to take you on a circular train of thought (bear with me here). Look at Psalm 139:14 'I am fearfully and wonderfully made'. The word fear used many times in the Bible means 'reverence, awe, or respect', so...'I am reverently, awesomely, respectfully and wonderfully made'. Now the Bible also says that the FEAR of the Lord is the beginning of WISDOM (PS 111:10; PROV 9:10). All wisdom comes from a God who is all knowing. If He were all knowing, He'd never make a mistake because mistakes are by definition 'an error, a wrong statement, decision or action' and He can't make an error since He knows everything- get it? So now 'I am reverently, awesomely, respectfully and wonderfully in an all-knowing wisdom made'.

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Bottom Line: You were created as a unique individual for a purpose, by God's own hands.

God also knows us infinitely better than we know ourselves. I bet none of us know the number of hairs on our head or how many steps we've taken in our lifetime or how many days we have left to live. God does along with everything else that we've ever done, felt, thought, or will do, feel, or think:

'Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered' (MT 10:30)

'My times are in your hands;' (PS 31:15a)

Psalm 139 sums up the intimacy that God has with each of us. It answers the question of How well does God know me?

Look at the Psalm and write a few words of what God is saying to you personally for each set of verses:

V 1-6:

V 7-12:

V 13-18:

V 19-24:

To me, verses 1-6 means that God knows me PERSONALLY. He has perfect knowledge of all that I do. Verses 7-12 bring home that God is watching me at every moment and will never go away. God will be with me no matter what!! The next few verses emphasize my Creator. I am precious in His sight with a plan and destiny for my life. In verse 17 some translations have 'How precious TO me are your thoughts, O God' but that word