If you were to list some of the traumatic experiences in your life, would bra or swimsuit shopping hit the list? Well, it has for me on more than one occasion. Recently I learned one of Victoria’s little secrets; in her store, you’re not the size you think you are. My latest foray into that little shop of horrors left me wondering when I grew two extra…um… girl parts on the front, and two on the back! Needless to say, I left the store without purchasing anything and went to a store that does a proper fitting and sells undergarments to real women with real bodies. Shoot, they even sell things to real women with real bodies who are in denial and don’t mind wearing something akin to a Chinese torture device under their clothing to make them look like they shop at Vickie’s.That’s not what I bought, but I know it’s there if I need it. 😉

After watching my daughter have a melt-down after trying on jeans she thought were her size (honestly I thought they were too) and realizing they were a little too snug, I found myself pulling her in close and reminding her that she is not a number. The sales clerk did her best to conduct damage control, but my sweet child just wanted to make a hasty escape. I couldn’t say I blamed her.

I say all of that to say this: You, dear one, are not a number. Your are a soul who inhabits a body, and your beauty lies within your spirit.

You are wonderful.

How do I know? Psalm 139:14 says so. “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” Do you see that? The second part of that verse tells us that God’s works are wonderful while, in the first part of the verse, the writer acknowledges that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. God’s works are wonderful-we are His works-we are wonderful.

While our bodies are to be a temple for the Holy Spirit, and we are to care for them as such, we are not defined in God’s eyes by the size on a label or the shallow standards of our fellow man. 1 Samuel 16:7 says this: “ But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.'” The Lord was telling Samuel not to judge Saul by how the world saw him, because Saul was apparently tall, dark, and handsome; instead the Lord was telling Samuel that His standards are not those of the world.

God looks at your heart.

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;  in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

Proverbs 4:23 Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

Your beauty comes from within, let it out.

Much love,

Shari

Peacock