My Body Image By Pete BriscoeSample

Reality checkup for you Our bodies are apt to be our autobiographies. — Frank Gillette Burgess The human body. This topic is of immense concern in our culture. Look at the diet ads on television after New Year’s Day, the plastic surgeons’ advertisements, the latest infomercial touting a machine that can make you look like Mr. or Mrs. Universe in less than two minutes a day. Consider our “body language.” Our conversations can so often end up focusing on our bodies and the dreaded “F” word— fat . We’re always talking about our bodies! Yeah, our culture has taught us to be obsessed with our bodies, but in all the wrong ways for all the wrong reasons. Should we really be concerned about which emaciated Hollywood star has gained 3.5 ounces over the holidays? Maybe not; but we are. Enough about what we , the books, and tabloids say about this… what does God say about the body? I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. (Psalm 139:14) Your body is wonderful. Do you believe that? Could you praise God for your body? Do you? That’s not a simple question, is it? Many of us praise God in spite of how our bodies seem to be made. Some of us can’t think of any reason to thank Him at all. As our bodies interact with the world, they often experience pain, disease, injury, and… eventually, death. Sure, our bodies might be “wonderful,” but not always in the “good” sense of the word. Is it possible that we have been made in a way that is “full of wonder” in the sense that we might have more questions than answers? In His Word, God tells us the truth about our bodies—all the good, all the bad. I believe He wants you to see your body as He sees it, and to use it as He intended. He wants you to praise Him for the way He has made you, and to thank Him, by faith, for your body. That might seem like a real stretch right now. But if that’s what He wants for us, He stands ready to make it happen through us. Dear Lord, thank You for Your many blessings and for shaping me to reflect Your perfect image. Help me to see my body as You see it. Please expose the lies that I have believed about how I am made. Open my eyes and mind so I can see the full wonder of the body You have given me. Amen.