After he flung the galaxies into the universe; after he created the sun, earth, and moon, the sea, dry land, plants, and animals, God made humankind. God made us like himself in many ways—in his image. He gave us a soul/spirit and a physical body. Each of us has a heart, a mind, a personality, and power to rule the earth and to make it fruitful and beautiful. We each have inalienable dignity, something that cannot be taken from us, because we are made in the image of God.

We may suffer terribly, be tortured, or be thrown into a ­prison, but we are still in the image of God our Creator, awesome beings. In our fallen state we may have committed crimes, but the image of God we bear still glimmers within and calls us to repentance. It also demands that we be given a fair trial and not be treated ­inhumanely.

God's infinite and personal nature showed itself when the Creator walked and talked with Adam and Eve in the garden. It showed itself when God came to Abraham as a traveler and ate lunch with him. God desires to be our friend because he is personal. At the same time God is infinitely powerful, the Master of the universe who created it all by his word.

What an amazing God we serve! So great—and yet he loves each one of us personally!