Day 7

Today was a wonderful Sunday. Woke up. Had coffee on the porch. Waited for Josh and Riley to get back from their walk. Went to Church. Made lunch/ate lunch/ napped with Bridgett. Decorated Josh's new office. Hung out at home. Good day. So proud of my husband. Tomorrow is his first day at his new job. I know he will do great!

Now, for Made to Crave!
“Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we find it not.”—Ralph Waldo Emerson
Have you ever met a woman who loves the way she looks completely 100% of the time. If this woman exists, she has a great gift, because this is not the case for me. Sure, sometimes I look in the mirror and think that a certain top makes me look particularly slim, and on this day, I have slightly more confidence, but more often than not, I can find some flaw that I use to tear myself apart---something that I do not think is good enough, not the way I want it to be.
Lysa says, "We tend to focus on what we see wrong with our bodies, including negative impressions and comments that stick with us from childhood. In middle school, weight wasn’t my biggest concern, but rather my ankles … yes, my ankles! A boy I liked once called them “tankles.” You bet that left a scar." 
Sounds silly, but I know exactly how she feels. In elementary school, a girl nicknamed me "Big Toes." I haven't forgotten . . .

"But if I allow my brain to park in a place of dissatisfaction about my body, it gives Satan room to strip me of motivation by whispering, “Your body is never going to look the way you want it to look, so why sacrifice so much? Everyone eventually falls apart. Your discipline is in vain.” That’s why I have to seek the Lord’s perspective, such as the reminder in Psalms:

Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name … and forget not all his benefits—who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. (Psalm 103:1–5)"

My body is not perfect, but I am working on being satisfied with the body that God has given me. My body is a gift from God. A good gift, that I may choose to use to glorify Him, instead of dwelling on the imperfections of it.

"Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we find it not.” I’ve found my beautiful. And I like my beautiful. I don’t have to hold my beautiful up to other people’s bodies with a critical eye of judgment. I pray that you see your beautiful today and enjoy the blessings of the body that God gave you."

Each morning I have to wake up and make the choice to see myself as the beautiful creature that God has created me to be. It doesn't always happen, but it is a continual process. I pray that you've found your beauty or are in the process of doing it as well.