How many times have you looked in the mirror and the first thing you noticed was what was “wrong.” To us, our flaws stick out like a sore thumb. We notice the tiny hair that sticks out from the top of our head, the extra inch on our thighs, the pimple on our cheek, and so on. It is so easy to look in the mirror and see what’s “wrong.” It’s hard to remember the last time I looked at myself and thought wow I’m not looking too bad today. Instead I cringe at the reflection.
As I sat today and reflected on why we might do this I began to wonder when did we stop loving ourselves? When did the little girl with pigtail braids and sparkly justice shirts stop thinking she was the coolest. Because guess what, that little guy or gal you once knew, they’re still the coolest, sometimes we just forget it. Serious question: When did we stop loving ourselves? When did we stop thinking that being different was great? And y’all why? Why have we as a society forgotten that we are loved by a God so good and so kind and that’s all that matters. We have forgotten that he thinks we’re good enough to die for. And how flipping cool is that. We forget to love on ourselves. Every once in a while, we need a compliment. A little boost, a smile. We are nowhere near perfect people, but we also aren’t the horrible image we’ve created in our heads. Why do we think it’s not ok to have a pimple? That’s life yall. People get pimples. That doesn’t make you not worthy. When did we start thinking we all had to be the same size. Since when is there a perfect body type. We are worthy because we were created by the Lord in his own perfect image- not the worlds. We look like God wants us to.
Whenever I’m feeling really insecure my mom always tells me that it hurts God when we think that way. And I think that’s true. God wants us to love ourselves. He wants us to be confident, and brave, and strong, and courageous. You are worth so much more than a like on Instagram, you are worth Gods love and y’all that is so much cooler. It’s true- we mess up. Sometimes we mess up so bad that we really dislike ourselves and tear ourselves down. But y’all God still wants you- mistakes and all. You are not less loved or worthy because you messed up. God didn’t put us on this Earth to be perfect. He put us here to be messy, and real, and speakers of his love.
Be kind to yourself. Wake up in the morning and compliment yourself instead of saying something negative. Tell yourself your smart and worthy, not the opposite. We have to start remembering to love ourselves or we will end up so hurt and scared. Guess what. Jesus loves you. Yep you. Flaws, mistakes, sin and all. We are not perfect people, but we don’t need to be. You are worthy not because you get 600 Instagram likes, but because the Lord loves you. You were worth dying for. And as far as I’m considered, that’s a pretty cool reason to love yourself.
With love, Annie