Does the thought of answering that question embarrass you?
Weight is a huge issue amongst women. I would be hard pressed to find a women who has never struggled with her self image related to weight at some point in her life. Ladies… we are not defined by the number on the scale, by the number of rolls in our bellies or by how many time a week we work out. We spend too much time agonizing over those extra pounds or what we have or don’t have to wear. All that time and energy is robbing you of the fullness of your destiny in God. You cannot hear Him through all the negative noise in your head. I’m too fat, I hate this roll, and I wish I looked like her, if only… You are not defined by your weight or how you look so replace those thoughts with thoughts of destiny and purpose and what God sees when he looks at you.
Imagine what we would be able to accomplish if we didn’t allow our weight to take up space in our brains. For someone women this is a bigger issue than for other women. Weight is a cultural issue, every message we are sent from the time we are small says thin is better, younger is better, work out more, eat less, do this diet, take these pills and eventually over time it creeps into our view of ourselves.
But what is interesting about this struggle is it’s not that those messages ever go away. Even if we don’t watch TV, read magazines or watch movies we naturally compare ourselves to each other and more often than not feel that we don’t measure up. Walking in the fullness of your purpose in God does not cause these messages to go away but the amount of space they take up in your head is considerably less.
The more time I spend learning who God says I am the less time I spend obsessing over those last 5 pounds. The more time I spend listening to what He says I can do the less time I spend thinking about the food I can’t eat. The more time I spend being the women He has called me to be, the less time I spend wishing I looked like someone else. The more time I spend reading my Bible and living out my faith in community with other women who strengthen and encourage me, the more I feel like with God I can take on the world and the less time I spend thinking about what I am going to wear on Sunday morning.
Being free from allowing weight or self image to define you does not mean you don’t struggle with it from time to time. Being free is not the absence of struggle, staying free is jumping into God purpose for your life in the midst of your struggle. Fat is not a feeling. But for so many of us it’s such a real feeling. When God gives you purpose what you see when you look in the mirror is different. When you step into that purpose you see His beauty when you look in the mirror.
You are a beautiful woman… you are beautiful because God created you beautiful… you are beautiful because of the unique and special characteristics and strengths he has put within you… you are beautiful because you are a chosen child of an inheritance beyond monetary value. You are a beautiful woman. Look in the mirror today and say with confidence… I am a beautiful woman…
Did you cringe at the thought of doing that today?
I’m thinking, “How much do you weigh” is a rhetorical question, right?? I almost dropped dead when I read that. I suddenly felt as if there were thirty people standing behind me waiting to see if I’d answer, and answer truthfull. Let’s just say my head is very heavy, so much so that I tend to topple forward when I walk. I know all to well what weight and the numbers can do to a person psyche and soul. I thought I was controlling my weight. It was controlling me. I didn’t weigh myself for about ten years, after rehab. My doctor used to weigh me backwards so I couldn’t see. If I can do my pants up without laying down on the bed, I’m happy. You’re right, focussing on God and His Kingdom is what our minds should be consumed with. PS couldn’t help but notice that your “numbers” were noticeably absent from this post.
Hope,
Did you actually just ask me what my numbers were… like my weight?
Ever since I was young I felt like the scale said I was heavier than I felt. At some point I made the decision never to tell anyone how much I weigh. Even when I was thinner I still felt the number was higher than I wanted it to be.
As God has healed my issues with weight the idea of telling people how much I weigh is still a struggle. It’s like people who are not comfortable going to the bathroom with the door open… that’s just the way they are…
I will leave the bathroom door open but I will not talk about how much I weigh.
It’s so stupid… I don’t even mind the number… it’s like a barrier… Ok I am going to go for it…
Actually on second thought… maybe another day…
I am going to save that for a post…
I weigh 145pds. My ideal healthy weight should be 128pds. and my favorite weight to be it 120pds. I am 17 pds. overweight and every bit of it shows because I am “a shorty” plus I have alot of loose skin which will always hang out even if I lose that last 15 pds. I know that extra weight is not good for my back but if I am to put in an effort to lose it, then it will be very slow, steady and healthy lifestyle adjustments.
I am celebrating a healthy body even at this weight and I have been free of eating disorders for almost 8 years now. I am never going to take that for granted. I lost so much of my life energy and time due to that illness and I will never return.
You are right Lori, Jesus wants so much more for our lives than a number on the scale. Let’s live life not live looks!
Lori,
When you weigh as much as I do, 5 pounds doesn’t make a dent!
The last time I was close to ideal weight was 6.5 years ago when I weighed 210-215. I think if I could find a scale right now I’d be pushing 250.
Not that I don’t need to work on that, but you’re right about letting your identity be framed by who we are through Christ. There’s a lot of distractions that fall away when you let His perspective shape who you are. That’s been a huge victory for me in the last 5 years. I’m OK with who I am and I love what God is doing in me, and I’m willing to take the time to grow instead of rushing towards some falsely defined perfection.
Great post…
I struggled with weight issues my whole life mainly as a result of all the abuse experiences. Eating disorders became a part of my life as a preteen and until only relatively recently when God truly healed me from all the issues of my past. It is now totally about being who God created, being healthy to follow where He is calling, and to now reach out and help others!
btw–at 5′3″, top weight was 203, lowest was 112. Healthy is where I am now!!!