In Monica Rose Brennan’s book Marveously Made she exquitivesely guides the reader in discovering the core of who we are. Through each chapter you are lead by scripture to grasp truths that will ultimately draw you closer to Christ. The content of this book exposes things that we as women struggle with and why our relationship with our Creator can be hindered. Marvelously made enables us to take off our mask in order to open our eyes to the freedom in Christ. Pointing out that our identity lies in Christ. Through Him we find purpose and in Him we are set free. The book begins by assessing what realness is and what it means to be real. In doing this we take a step back and look at who we are and who God is. As we assess ourselves we often find that we escape our struggles by masking our true self. Monica states that “the interesting thing about God is that He is always aware when we are hiding from Him and wearing a mask(pg 26)” Thankfully even in our attempt to cover up our real self God sees who we really are and still loves us the same. In him we will find all that we need.
In Christ we discover who we are. As we persue Jesus we find out things we never knew about ourselves. According to Monica “we need to grasp on to these unchanging truths God has perfect knowledge of you, God is always present, God uniquely and purposefully created you, and you are always on God’s mind(pg49).” Each of these unchanging truths give us a Godly confidence. In which we can be firm in the foundation that Christ has laid. In discovering who we are we also come to a crossroads and find that our perception of reality has gone awry. Monica “points out that we can have a disorted view of God and in turn have a distorted view of self(57).” By doing this we muddle the truth and we let sin have a foothold in our lives. As sin becomes rooted in our lives our hearts shift away from God and toward the things of this world. “In other words we turn our devotion from Christ and place our number-one affection on something or someone other than Christ alone, we are literally stripping away our true identity, which has been given to us by our Makerpg(pg135)” By doing that we limit God and what He can do in and through our lives. Adam and Eve were a prime example of turning there hearts away from God. “Adam and Eve took their thoughts and affections away from being enthralled with their Father and put them onto their fleshly desires that were aroused through an openness to sin (pg 109)” Once their focus shifted Satan was right there to draw them in. In God’s word it says “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.Galatians 5:24niv” As Christians we need to lay down our desires in order for Christ to be glorified. A number of things lead Eve to sin that day in the garden as it points out in marvelously made she ultimately forgot where her identity lies and gave in to the lies of the devil.
Eve is not the only woman that has fallen prey to the lies of the enemy. Throughout this book she goes through everyday women that have turned their affections away from their creator and towards other things. These things take the place in our hearts of where God should be. “However, we so often allow temporal things relationships, people, body image, education, career, money, religion or hobbies to become our main means of identity(pg162).” By God’s abounding grace we can turn our affections back to Him and he will lead us and guide us in truth. Through this book I have taken away key principles that will continue to point me back toward Christ. First, is being real with God and being real with others. By doing this it makes you vunerable but it puts you in a position to receive all that wants to do in and through you. Taking off your “mask” will help further your relationship with God and you can experience fullness in His presence. Second, finding out who you are starts with finding out who Christ is. As we desire to draw closer to Him we come upon foundational truths that will really shape how we view ourselves and others. Not only knowing these truths but believing them will radically change our lives for His glory. Thirdly, If we confine God to our human imagination we fail to see him for how he truly is. If we see him as scripture clearly indicates we can grow and watch in amazement as His power is manifested in our lives. Our identity and purpose as women lies in Jesus Christ. I have learned that in order to tap into that purpose I need to be in constant abiding union with the Lord Jesus. Each day we have to let go of all that hinders us and press on toward the finish line. In our daily life we as women should being trying to live out the truths of the bible. These truths include patience, peace, love, kindness, gentleness and many more all of these attributes point back to the character of God. In him we find out more about ourselves as daughters of Christ. Learning these foundational truths now can really impact my future greatly. It helps me to trust that God loves me and that he is constant as the world changes with each day God remains the same. Knowing who I am in Him and who he has called me to be molds me as my relationship with Christ progresses. How He sees me has and will continue to impact my life knowing that He set me apart and that He so intimately cares about me gives me confidence. With this confidence I know that know matter what happens he will always be their to guide me in wisdom and truth.