Don’t pick apart
I’d read amazing reviews of the facial cleansing brush, but the before and after photos persuaded me to invest in one for myself. It arrived on my doorstep last week, and I eagerly unboxed it with visions of my skin’s youthful, radiant, glowing future.
Hair pulled back into a ponytail, I flipped the phone camera around and snapped a ‘before’ photo of my freshly cleansed face.
Somehow, between the milliseconds it took for me to snap the photo and then view it, a different woman’s face appeared on the screen. She looked nothing like the reflection in the mirror staring back at me.
I’d never noticed how asymmetrical her face was. Or how much her hooded eyelids were pressing down on her lash lines. I zoomed in, scrutinizing every detail and feeling I was no longer in need of a cleansing brush but a good filter instead.
I recently read that research shows body dissatisfaction for girls begins at the age six.
Six.
That same research study revealed that girls’ body dissatisfaction is often predicted by how they perceive their mother feels about her own body.
A timely reminder I needed as I harshly criticized mine.
Dear friends, let us not pick apart what God has intentionally knit together.
Listen, you and me and every other living, breathing female, likely struggles with body image. And I get it. It’s a hard balance to find, isn’t it?
There have been seasons in my life where I have obsessed over my appearance. I’ve refused to enjoy a candy bar because “a second on the lips, forever on the hips.” And then there have been seasons where I simply wanted to give up and settle into an unhealthy lifestyle because it was easy and satisfied my flesh.
“Do you not know your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore, honor God with your bodies.” – 1 Corinthian 6:19-20
God has entrusted us with bodies to care for. They are gifts, knit together by His hands. Sure, they’re designed to change and some of those are more enjoyable to endure than others. But a believer’s body is meant to be used for kingdom purposes, not simply appearances.
So let’s make that our focus. Not how we look, but how we can serve. Because then, when we shift the focus from ourselves to others, we’ll begin to find true satisfaction.
The steady, stable, satisfaction that God generously gives and the world can’t take away.
