I think my mirror at home must be a fun house mirror, a magical one that keeps changing it’s shape and in turn changing my body’s.
Mirror images can often be distorted. It’s either our eyes or our minds that seem to make the focus all wrong. I finally understood the side mirror of my car the other day, ‘objects are closer than they appear’. The same warning should be on the mirrors in our home. Objects in the mirror are smaller than you think. Well, heck, that should be the messaging in our heads about every situation.
Warning: “this moment is a smaller deal than it appears”. Warning: “your thighs are smaller than they appear”, Warning: “that zit is smaller than it appears”, Warning: “your stomach is smaller than it appears”…
Because the truth is “you are more beautiful than you appear to yourself”
I’ve always made the mirror my worst enemy, but it’s because I was making myself my worst enemy. I think I’ll always need warnings and fruitful reminders to stop viewing myself in such a negative light. To stop picking apart every flaw that I see with my hypercritical eye. I think that’s why the side mirror has the warning embedded into it. I’ve decided to refuse the negative thoughts and words I say about myself. I’ve chosen to capture my negative thoughts and make them kind and loving so that I stop feeling defeated, ashamed, broken and start living, loving, feeling energized and inspired. It’s simple and hard, but it takes a change in mind-set – it takes a change of what you’re reflecting.
My Personal Mirroring Story
I remember the day that I began to see myself differently. I’ve spend every morning for the past 8 years in God’s presence through scripture or bible studies and I’ve learned that there is nothing more important to me than spending time with God. I hope and pray that everyone becomes so passionate and dedicated to time with HIM that we’ll do anything to make it happen.
Anyway, this particular morning I was studying about what it means to be an image bearer of God and how to walk that out in my daily life. It was one of those moments where I held my breath in anticipation of knowing something big was going to shake my belief systems.
I was in a poisonous state of thought about myself. I was believing a lie that I wasn’t worthy of love. I had hated on myself for so long that I I thought it was normal to do so. That I’d forever be trapped in the bondage of self-loathing and the darkness that follows that kind of thought pattern. Then I learned that every negative thought about myself was causing sickness, a break down in my immune system and causing my body to attack itself (autoimmune disease, poor digestion…) Why? Because we have been created to live in step with the Holy Spirit and our bodies respond to our thoughts – If we think that we’re the enemy – our immune system, digestive system and cells do the same. (it gets pretty heady to go through the details of it so I’ll spare you that today – if you want to know, please contact me, I’d love to share! ) Bottom line, the mind is so powerful! Guess that’s why scripture tells us to take our thoughts captive!
Insecurity, self-rejection and poor self-image are an epidemic in our society today and sadly, Christians aren’t exempt from this way of feeling and thinking – but this doesn’t have to be the case any longer. We are children of the creator of the galaxies and He finds us so important and loves us so much that He sent His son to die for us!
Knowing that I was hurting my body and not living for God with all my self hate made me decide to change the way I look at myself! It didn’t happen over night – but from that morning on I chose to start seeing myself the way that God sees me. I started to take my thoughts captive and make them obey the truth of who God says that I am – I anchored myself in His truth and fought off Satan as he continuously tries to take me back into bondage of negative thoughts.
How to start changing your vision
Scripture talks about mirrors, for example we are created as a mirror image of God. when our inner monologue doesn’t convey that message, we live in defeat and become consumed with self-shame, guilt and disgust. Personally, I’d often hate what I was reflecting on the scale or in the mirror so much that I’d full out hate the person I was – not just my looks, but everything about me. eek!
Take those negative thoughts and read Genesis 1:26. I noticed a huge disconnect. Did you? How can we say that we believe the Bible is truth, yet our actions and self-talk can be so far away from Scripture? It’s the enemy – that’s how. He is out to kill, steal and destroy our joy, peace, and ability to reflect the only mirror we should be weighing ourselves against.
When we reflect the earthly expectations and the desires of our flesh to fit into things of this world, we live life against the Truth of Scripture. Since we are created in the image of God and that we are to reflect His character we need to do a few things to be successful at applying the true mirror to our lives.
- Spend time with God – Learn about His character – it’s the same Character that lives within us and gives us strength. God is God and we’ll never be, however scripture tells us that He is our Strength and the fruits of the Spirit are our right as believers in Christ to fuel our days and our minds. So, the more time we spend with God – the more we will reflect Him – We are who we spend time with, so where and with who are you spending yours?
- Take your thoughts captive – stop talking badly about yourself. PERIOD. Each time you do you allow the enemy to kill, steal, and destroy the joy, peace and abundance that God has for you. Why let someone take such blessings from your life?
- Accept where you are at this moment – we are all on a personalized journey of sanctification and we are NOT walking it alone. God is with us every step of the way, teaching and growing us. If you look at yourself with “wishes” – ‘I wish I was thinner’, ‘I wish I was happier’, ‘I wish I was stronger’, ‘I wish I was like that girl’….. you’ll remain in defeat and it’s such a horrible place to be (I know, I spent years there) BUT God is faithful! The sooner we accept where we are and begin to walk in step with the Holy Spirit and mirror the Character of God the sooner we will see peace overflow from within, joy in every situation and victory from the bondage of mirroring the world.
It’s a daily battle, but I am prepared for the trials, the struggles, and the curve balls that life throws at me because scripture says, “many are the trials, but the Lord delivers me – why does he deliver us? Because He loves us – because we are images of Him.
Life is about three things – and in this order: Love God – Love yourself – Love others. You can’t have one without the other and you can’t have an abundant life that mirrors truth unless you have a close love relationship with God, your creator.
