My Woven Devotion for American Heritage Girls

“You are chosen by God and WOVEN into His image. Your life is to be a living testimony of His love, His grace, His righteousness, and His sovereignty. ” – Patti Garibay, American Heritage Girls Founder.

I was blessed to contribute a devotion to the American Heritage Girls 2023 program year theme “WOVEN.” The 20-part devotion series explores Psalm 139:13-15.

“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.”

According to the King James Dictionary, “weave” means skillfully “unite by intermixture or close connection to form something new.” Psalm 139:15, ESV, says, “My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately WOVEN in the depths of the earth.”

The Hebrew word for “weave” is “rāqam,” which means to adorn with colors, variegate, or be wrought. The complexity of this word speaks volumes about a girl’s identity in Christ. The color breathed into her life testifies to her inherent beauty. The variations of threads used to weave her together confirm God’s intention of unique and diverse attributes among His creation.

And when a girl understands that God intentionally and carefully wrought her into being, she can be confident that she was created on purpose for a purpose.

To learn more about the amazing ministry at American Heritage Girls, click here.

In an age when society destroys a girl’s self-image and promotes the fluidity of her identity, she can find grounding and comfort in understanding how she was WOVEN by her Creator for her well-being and time and place in this world.

My devotion explores Psalm 139:15

“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.”

God’s secret place will always be a place of protection for you.

Woven in Secret

Do you have a secret place? Imagine finding a space under the stairs or a cozy spot in a closet. Would you decorate it with fluffy pillows and fuzzy blankets? How about adding a little lamp or

flashlight? Now bring your favorite smooth-tipped pens, colored pencils, and fat markers. Grab a journal and extra sheets of paper. Begin sketching pictures and writing poems and prayers. Now hang the drawings on the walls around you. Wow! You’ve created quite a secret place! Your secret place has pillows and blankets.

What’s in God’s secret place?

A Promise. Just to be clear, the phrase “secret place” is not a bad place. Sometimes we use the word “secret” to hide something. But God is not concealing anything—quite the opposite. His place is filled with His promise never to leave you. Psalm 139:7-8, NIV, begins by asking, “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?” And it concludes with, “If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.”

Our Identity.

The “secret place” in Psalm 139:15 is in a mother’s womb as her child develops. God is there. Psalm 139:15, ESV, says you were intricately WOVEN. The word “intricately” means He knows every part of you because he made you. You are His beautiful creation. Our identity is created by God. Our identity is in God. He made you with a plan and a purpose.

Our Protection.

The Hebrew meaning of the phrase “secret place” describes God’s protection. King David recalls many times when God came to his rescue. In Psalm 27:5, ESV, he writes, “For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble; he will conceal me under the cover of his tent; he will lift me high upon a rock.” God’s secret place is a place of protection for you.

Our Home.

You are not a visitor or stranger to God’s secret place. You are home with God. Psalm 91:1, ESV, says, “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.” To dwell with God is to be at home with God. Jesus. Jesus is your secret place. He made you in the secret place and intricately wove you together in your mother’s womb. Our life is now hidden with Christ in God according to Colossians 3:3. Jesus calls us to abide in Him because He abides with us. “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:4-5, ESV)

Jody Token
Coach and creator of The Great Flip
Developer of AHG’s The Great Flip Patch Program
Contributor to AHG’s Free to Grow Patch Program

Discussion

• Do you have a special place that is yours to go and be alone and away from others?
• How does it feel to know that God is always there, even in your secret place, and knows
everything about you?
• How can you create a space, either physically or in your heart, that is welcoming to God and
invites His protection over you?

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your protection over my life, even in secret places. I am glad that
You see me even when no one else does. Thank You for how You wove me together in secret from
the very beginning. Please draw me close to You in all of my secret places now. In the name of
Your loving Son, Jesus, amen.

Activity

Supplies: Paper, writing utensils (pens, pencils, markers, etc.), pillows, and other decorations
Create a “secret” place of your own!
1. Write out some of your favorite Bible verses and prayers that remind you of God’s great
love for you.
2. Ask permission for a small, special place you can use for quiet time away from others.
This could be a closet, under-stair cubby, playhouse, or treehouse.
3. Decorate your special place with your favorite Bible verses, prayers, pillows, and other
decorations.
4. Spend time in your quiet place alone with God, reading His Word, and thanking Him for
the beautiful ways He uniquely wove you.

The Great Flip is honored to be an American Heritage Girls national program alliance! This means AHG troops and families can subscribe to my online martial arts program to: