Reposting this from September, 2008. A great New Year's reminder. Happy New Year, everyone. :)
Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.
Proverbs 31:30
As I embark on this little weight loss journey, I've been contemplating almost every second of today what exactly is motivating me. I struggle with vanity. Ironic; vanity is such an ugly trait. I desire to be beautiful, but why? To be more alluring? I've always been a firm believer in "looking good for my man" and especially now that I have one whose very presence raises my blood pressure several notches. But, he can't be my motivation for wanting to take care of myself physically (or emotionally, mentally, spiritually....) I have to do it for me and my relationship with my Creator. I hope it doesn't come from selfish motives, or worse, rage uncontrollably into an obsession. I don’t ever want it to stem from a lack of security in who I am.
So, the question is: Who am I?
I'm God's daughter; an heir to His throne. I am loved lavishly by my Father and I love Him back with everything I am. He determines for me what is beautiful. I embrace my identity as His daughter and His bride. I embrace my femininity. God sees me as a precious pearl; a virtuous woman whose beauty outshines the stars. I belong to Him. He values me. My value is not determined by my physical appearance. It's not determined by what I say or do. It's not determined by my character. My value does not fluctuate. It doesn't rise and fall with my weight, my mood or my dedication to my Savior. My value does not change when I make a mistake, or when I do something good. It does not come from within me. My value comes from God.
Do you not know that 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 Corinthians 6:19,20
I had to question whether I had become ensnared by the lies that tell me my worth changes like the wind blows. If my motivation to lose weight is to make myself feel more valuable, my motivation is all screwed up, because I can't do anything to change my value. So my hope is that my reasons for losing weight remain true to the fact that I have been given this temporary temple, and that I need to take good care of it because it does not belong to me.
So, here's to better temple building on the beautiful foundation He has laid. :)
10 comments:
Wonderful insight!!! No wonder Grace is such a treasure. Instill these thoughts in her and it will be such a wonderful legacy that will serve her, and everyone she knows, well.
:) Thanks. I'm tryin'!
you are beautiful my precious, friend...INSIDE AND OUT! love you much!
The struggle continues....it is a daily grind. Between what we know/believe that God has created us to be and what Satan and self tell us we need to look like and be.
I share in your journey w/ya sister. In more ways than one.
LY
TD
Makes me think...if society really valued women that feared the Lord, would we have more places of worship than health clubs, nail salons, etc.? Would Mother Teresa posters be more popular than those of super models?
There is nothing wrong at all with beauty...God is the author of it. There is nothing wrong, and in fact there is much right, in keeping our temples as healthy as possible.
I think you hit on some truth when you talk about most of us equating beauty with love and acceptance.
I used to remind my girls when they were young to learn the lessons of the beautiful celebs...their lives often built around physical beauty...and often cut short, or lived out miserably because their focus was on fleeting beauty.
So my rhetorical question...(always the teacher, right?)...where are you investing your time and effort? Is it mainly in the pursuit of physical beauty, or is it in the pursuit of fearing (honoring, respecting) God?
Where our treasure (time, talent) is, so is our heart.
Very thoughtful post, Steph. I think you are in no danger of doing this for the wrong reasons or falling prey to society's "rules".
Atta girl!
Beautifully put, daughter dear. I wish I could take some of the credit for that, but you have learned much in your adulthood.
Taking care of things that have been given to you by the Lord to care for...that would be just about everything we have, not just our bodies. Our children, our spouses and loved ones, our jobs, our homes, our time, talent and money. All belong to Him and are only placed in our care. Stewards...serving our Jehovah-Jireh who generously provides all we need.
Just food for thought...since you are not eating any!
Thanks Mark and momma p. Very well said!
Steph, your words are soothing to my heart. I've thought a lot about this very issue lately. For me, it's not weight, but vanity...appearance. Sweetheart and I talked about it just last night. Why do we look at a woman with no make-up, modest clothes, and assume she's a godly woman? Even if we know she is, why does her extremely modest appearance maker her more so? God did create us to be feminine, and there's nothing wrong with that. Our job is to avoid the traps of Western society that tell us that femininity equals thin, tan, busty, blond, perfect, etc. It gets worse with each generation.
When it comes to weight, I find nothing wrong with striving to get to a point where you feel healthy...you feel strong. I don't put so much emphasis on the numbers, just how I feel in my skin.
Sorry for the novel I wrote here. Your words and these verses have empowered me. I'm going to print them off and read them for a week or so.
Love you.
You are fearfully and wonderfully made! check out my Blog http://saltofeathlightofworld.blogspot.com/
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