Over the past month, I have had the opportunity to talk "body issues" with nearly all of my friends and it has really made me think...do I have them, and are they important? In my not-so-expert-opinion, every person, male or female, has body issues. It's unavoidable to some degree, particularly in our society, which is so consumed with images of perfection. Particularly as females, we are inundated with "should bes." A woman should be skinny. A woman should have large breasts-but not so large that they draw too much attention to herself. A woman should wear makeup. A woman should be fit, but not too fit. As a Christian woman, these "should bes" only increase-instead of decrease. A woman should not be obsessed with the way she looks BUT, at the same time, should be constantly wary of how she looks. A Christian woman should be modest. She should be demure. She should be, should be, should be! There are so many things that I should be that I often can't see what I am.
Thanks to genetics and a healthy amount of exercise, I am skinny. And yet, when I look in the mirror, I see flaws. I see chubby thighs and a pudgy stomach. I see arms that are too muscular. Also thanks to genetics and a doctor's prescription, I have clear skin. And yet, I see old acne scars that makeup doesn't quite cover up. I see the fact that I don't know how to put on makeup, thanks to a tomboyish adolescence. And yet, I think that I have a healthy body image...most of the time. And other times, like today, I realize that my body image isn't just unhealthy, it's deplorable. And that's not because I think that I'm chubby or skinny or anything else. It's because I forget that my body is not mine. My job is to use everything at my disposal to glorify my God. And being consumed with the way that my body looks is certainly not glorifying, it's prideful. When I worry about my body, it's because I am pursuing the approval of man and not the glory of God. It's all about a change of perspective. Right now, mine is skewed...but I'm working on it.
Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the
putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your
adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty
of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious. -1 Peter 3:3-4
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within
you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought
with a price. So glorify God in your body. -1 Cor. 6:19-20
Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. -Proverbs 31:30
Good reminder!
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