At about 3:00 every afternoon, I hear the front door open and a heavy thud as my 16-year-old daughter drops her backpack on the linoleum. I call out my usual greeting from my desk: “Hello, Beautiful! How was your day?”
Her reply is always the same…
“Ew… It’s just me, Mom. No one else is here. But my day was fine. I’ll tell Beautiful you asked about her if I see her.”
She’s joking and I know she has a modest, healthy self-esteem, but I don’t speak sarcasm. And she “jokes” so much that sometimes it’s both concerning and a little hurtful.
There is one pretty child in the world…
Chinese Proverb
And every mother has it.
As her mother, I can testify that her beauty, both inside and out, is an indisputable fact. She is unquestionably the most beautiful and wonderful thing I’ve done in my life.
How can she not see that? Does she think I’m a liar?
Worse yet, what if she believes it and lives her life accordingly?
Do you question your own beauty?
But how often do I do the same to the One who made me?
Is God hurt when we speak low of ourselves? I’ve seen that God uses our perceived faults for His glory, and yet, how often do I reject my own individuality?
It’s fascinating to me what we think of ourselves versus what others often think of us. Click To TweetAs Heather and I discussed our featured post, I learned that Heather also calls her twin girls “Beautiful”, but they’re younger, so they love it! They trust their mother knows best and embrace it as truth.
And again, I wondered, what if we all just embraced what our Creator says about us with the childlike trust? How different our lives would be. How full of love the world would be. Each of us serving God with the beautiful quirks He gave us.
Our featured post today is by a friend and blogger I’ve been following since before I learned what a blog is. Ashley Rowland helped me find my identity in Christ and recognize the beauty of how He made me. And she still does.
Do you need a little help to recognize your own beauty? You’re not alone. So join us on HISsparrowBlog for 8 Important Verses for a Healthy Body Image.
One more thing – this post is more than a list. I’m not going to give it away, but Ashley discovered that every verse points to the same important truth. You’ll just have to read to the end for a lovely nugget of truth to take with you.
Click Here To Read This Week’s Featured Post
8 Important Verses for a Healthy Body Image
Grace & Truth for Your Body Image Click To TweetNow For This Week’s Link Up!
Let’s bless and encourage one another in our walk with the Lord…
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Join us each Friday for the Grace & Truth Link-Up!
Heather Hart & Valerie Riese
Maree Dee
Lauren Sparks
Lisa Burgess
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2 Comments
Such a lovely post Valerie, so many of us have struggled with self image & esteem in our younger years. Especially in a world that focuses upon the outward appearance & sets their standard which is not God’s.
But concentrating on God’s image of us brings a new found sense of self image & esteem to us.
Blessings,
Jennifer
Tea With Jennifer recently posted…Feeling Melancholy?
Thank you, Jennifer. Learning about how we are in Christ and embracing how He sees us is life-changing, isn’t it? Such freedom He gives us.
Remember: From our side of the computer screen, we can’t see your tears. We can’t see your beautiful smile. We can’t hear the emotion behind your words or the tone of your voice. All we get are your words. Write them with love.