I love looking at the pictures on my phone. Each one brings the memory of that event, those loved ones, that location, back to life in my mind. I even love thumbing through my many boxes of actual photographs and old photo albums. But like most people I know, especially women, I don’t like the pictures of me. I ask myself, “Is that really how I looked back then?” Even now, at a much older age, I still battle with my body image. 

I believe our body image often develops at a young age. Things said to us by our parents, siblings, peers, advertisements, weight loss programs and food labels can enter our minds and take up residence. Even habits we develop in our youth, good and bad, often remain active as adults. 

I have never been nor will I ever be a model, super or otherwise! So learning to accept my body image has always been a battle for me. I have accepted that my body will never look like it did in my twenties thanks to the effects of gravity and gray hair. But a couple days ago, after having a discussion with others about this very topic, I remembered something I heard over 30 years ago; God doesn’t make junk! It sounds like a slogan, doesn’t it? That’s what I thought the first time I heard it. But the more I let it sink in, the more I allowed my mind to accept those four little words, it became more of a mantra than a slogan.

God loves me completely and unconditionally. He looks at my heart, not my physical appearance. He is more interested in my inside than my outside. My spiritual life is more important than my physical one. So I need to clothe myself in compassion, kindness, gentleness and patience instead of being concerned with what size and brand of jeans I wear. I need to give myself grace and self compassion when that negative inner voice starts speaking louder. I need to “workout” my heart so it will grow in size. 

Sometimes, when I look in the mirror and don’t like the reflection, I wish I could see myself as God does. But then I remember I do. He sees me exactly as I am, inside and out and He loves me anyway. So if He loves me, I can love myself.

“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.”  Colossians 3:12 NIV

“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”  2 Corinthians 4:18 NIV

“Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.”  Proverbs 31:30 NIV