Something the majority of teenagers struggle with is body image. We're too fat. We're too skinny. We don't like our hair, or our noses, or the color of our eyes.
When I was in elementary school, I was overweight. When I was in high school, I was overweight. Right now? I'm overweight! Weighed in this morning at just under 200 pounds! It was kind of a crazy revelation, because I've been making such an effort to get fit recently. What I realized was that the weight I've gained this past year hasn't been fat, but muscle! It's kind of exciting. I'm still overweight, and a little on the chubby side, but I'm working through that.
So why am I writing about all of this? It's not to brag about my self-improvement or to encourage people to try and change the way they look. I'm writing this because I figured out that there's something so much more important than being the optimal body weight for your age + height. Now, for health reasons, that stuff is important to keep in mind, but I think what's ultimately more significant is how much you respect yourself and are just able to come to terms with where you're at. We definitely have to take care of our bodies, but it's so much more important to take care of our hearts! And if we hate ourselves because we ate too much pizza this morning or because our genetics left us with a weird, asymmetrical hairline, we aren't loving God enough! We were made in His image, so if we don't like what we see in the mirror, we don't like Him enough! We've gotta be able to look at ourselves through His eyes, and to love ourselves regardless of what the world tells us is 'normal.'
I don't think I have anything else to say about this. Anybody have any self-image horror stories? Any advice for readers out there who are struggling with this stuff? I'd love to hear about it in the comments section! :)
Stay tuned next month as I take part in the 2011 blog challenge!
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