You’re Already a Knockout Girl!
Finding our true identity in Christ from the inside out.
“You have such a pretty face”, “You’d be a knockout if you lost 20 pounds”, “Are you really going to eat that?” are all words and phrases I have heard and internalized my ENTIRE life.
I’d also hear “You’re beautiful,” “You can eat anything” and “Wow, you’ve lost weight!”. It didn’t matter how often I’d hear compliments; the painful comments were etched in my brain like scars no one knew I had.
I would revisit them every time I looked in the mirror, and on days I couldn’t bear to look at myself, I would still think these body-shaming thoughts. Sometimes I felt beautiful, but I couldn’t forget about the extra 10, 20, or 30 pounds I thought I needed to lose to accomplish any of my dreams, and I mean ANY of them.
Silly, I know, right?
Now it seems silly, but my weight defined me at the time and was a huge part of my identity. I felt like I was letting God down by not being the person he created or envisioned me to be…NOT overweight!
One day the shame completely took over and developed into a full fledge anxiety disorder. I didn’t want to go anywhere, see anyone or do anything. My worth completely dwindled. My body shaming wasn’t the only factor that caused my anxiety, but it definitely didn’t help.
I had tried everything from praying to several weight loss tactics. Finally, I had a prayer answered, and that was joining CW: Created Woman.
One day a friend through CW reached out to me and told me about DLC: Dream Launcher Connections Class. I could connect with a friend that was facing a similar journey to achieve my God-given dreams. I knew I was in the right place. As weeks went by, we connected and encouraged one another to take one dream step at a time.
My first step was to find a nutritionist instead of trying to do all of this myself. After all, it’s not a crime to want to get healthy but defining our worth by the weight we need to lose is dangerous. I needed help.
When I walked into my nutritionist’s office, I saw a sign on her wall that read “We can do hard things” (Philippians 4:13). I felt like God had planned this all along.
While working with my nutritionist, she helped to remind me that because I am a child of God, I should fuel my body as such. It wasn’t the other way around: lose weight to be worthy. God defines your worth so what you put in your mouth should fuel your temple! It was an “Aha!” moment for me.
I finally understood that my approach was all wrong because I wasn’t starting with what God defined me as; I was letting the world define me as worthless until I was perfect. We aren’t perfect, and that’s why we need Jesus.
I still struggle at times, and in those moments, I meditate on scripture to remind me of my worth. So now I encourage you to remind yourself to know that the foundation of your identity is in what God says about you: “For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are your works, and that my soul knows very well.” (Psalms 139:13-14).
You’re already a knockout, girl!
GO DEEPER
Do any insecurities you have keep you from living your dreams?
What is something unique about you that you love about yourself?
What bible verse can you meditate on that reminds you of your identity in Christ?
Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore, glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s. (1 Corinthians 6 NKJV)
But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel:16 NKJV)
Mae Grant
Elevate Your Style
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