Woman in the mirror

For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well.  

Psalm 139:13-14

My bedroom mirror is like the one in the movie Snow White, "Mirror, Mirror on the wall.  Who's the Fairest of them all?"  The lighting is perfect and it flatters me.  On the other hand, the mirror in the bathroom is my arch nemesis! It angles perfectly to accentuate every dark circle, wrinkle and "large object".

Keeping this in mind, recently as I was getting ready for a busy day.  I took a quick look in the mirror, in my bedroom, and I was good to go.  I ran around all morning to our kid's summer activities and work schedules.  At one point I stopped at the house to pick up and drop off and got a quick glance at myself in the bathroom mirror.  Ugh!  Instantly I was self conscious.  Have I looked this way the whole day? Should I put make-up on?  It's crazy how fast a girl can go from confident to self conscious in a split second.  Double "Ugh!"

How can two different mirrors reflect opposite things?

Why do I believe one mirror over the other?

Which one is telling me the truth?

Why do I care so much?

Ugh! Ugh! Ugh!

But truth be told, it's not just my mirrors that I allow to inform my beauty.  I allow the scale, other people's opinions and culture to define me or give me my worth.  Can I get an Amen?  Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook can scream "You're not good enough!" As we scroll, Pin and Like do we think "I wish I was...."  or "If only I had..."?  I recently discovered my own inner monologue one day as I was scrolling through Pinterest.  I began to notice the negative emotions I was feeling as I was finishing those sentences, over and over again.  There's nothing wrong with social media, per say.  I am a Pinterest junky!  But next time you're scrolling listen to your inner thoughts.  

If it's not culture informing our truth, it's other people's voices and opinions.  It's not dissimilar to my mirror incident that morning.  One mirror flatters and another insults.  It could be past voices in our heads or present voices that we've let into our hearts.  Have you felt the sting of a person's destructive words and immediately started doubting yourself?  Yes?  Can I get a collective "UUUgh!"?

Here's the thing ladies... What are we saying to God, our Creator, when we are unhappy with self?  Are we saying to the Creator that we don't like what He created?  When we wish we were something else do we tell God he made mistakes?  If we allow other humans to define us are we making their opinions more important than our Savior's?  Sigh.  Guilty as charged.  

Let's look at the real Truth.  What does the Bible tell us?  In Psalm 139:14 we see that we are "fearfully and wonderfully made."  In Psalm 8:5 it says that we are "crowned with glory and honor." Not to mention that we were made in God's image (Gen. 1:27) and that we are His children (Gal 3:26)!  Take a look at Romans 12:1-2 with me.

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

Exercise and diets and fashion and bettering ourselves isn't wrong.   But are we "copying" what the world says is beauty or are we allowing God to transform the way we think first? Are we offering our bodies to Him and allowing Him to inform our truth?   I want these verses to inform my identity.  Aren't you tired too of feeling less than as defined by the world?

When you look in your "mirrors" what do you see?  What is your inner monologue?  Let's take the Bull by the horns!  Before we jump on Social Media, before we go to one more "super fit" class, start one more juice cleanse, go to another hair appointment, tanning session, or listen to one more person's thoughtless words, let's start with time with Jesus.  Ask Him to show you how He sees you.  He's the only mirror who's lighting never changes.  Let's stop the cycle of insecurity and self-hate one thought and one swipe at a time.

 

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained, what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him? For You have made him a little lower than the angels, and You have crowned him with glory and honor.

Psalm 8:3-5

Photo by: Gena Buza