Two weeks ago I wrote for the
Enterprise on discipline of the body. As
I hurriedly sent that column off, I mused that when we do discipline our
bodies, it is often for the wrong reasons. Especially is that true of us who are
female. We exercise and diet so we can
fit into a smaller size jeans; pluck, dye and trim our hair in an attempt to look
younger; bake our skin so we look a little more like the bronzed women on the
front of the magazines that line the grocery store checkout.
And in the end, we don’t believe
that we are very attractive even after we do these things.
My trouble with self-perception
began in junior high with insecurity about my clothes and my glasses. It continued into high school, when I started
wishing for a narrower face and a curvier figure.
My self-consciousness heightened with every new pimple. My teeth were not white enough. My hair not the right style. I think that every woman I know can relate to
this – at least to some degree or another.
Why is it that when someone
remarks on how pretty we look in a new dress, we launch into a lengthy discourse about how we purchased it from the clearance rack at Kohls? Or when our husbands give us a hug and say, “You’re
so beautiful, honey,” we offer five pieces of evidence that prove the erroneous
nature of such a remark? (Often our
objections have to do with our figures or our face not looking like they used
to, when the reality is we weren’t happy with them back then, either!) Instead
of affirming to a friend how beautiful she is, we speculate what we could do
with our hair or what clothes we should buy in order to look like she does...rather than
give her a likely much-needed, sincere compliment.
The other week the kids and I
were in the dairy section of King Soopers waiting for an elderly lady to get a
gallon of milk out of the cooler. As we
stood there, another woman swooped in, squeezed the old lady by the arm, and
said, “You have the most beautiful snow-white hair I have ever seen. It’s just lovely.” That startled little woman beamed from ear to
ear as she shuffled away with her grocery cart.
Our self-perception is about much
more than disciplining our bodies, isn’t it?
It requires disciplining our minds, the topic of the column that I wrote for
this week’s Enterprise. (The video I linked
below demonstrates that. That’s why I
post it here, not to advertise for Dove.)
In many respects, the children of this generation are wiser than we who
are the children of light (Luke 16:8).
They believe that this life is all there is, that outward beauty
defines a person’s worth, and that's how they live. We say that we don’t
believe those things, but often we live like we do those lies, don’t we?
Instead, we should discipline our bodies
because God’s Spirit dwells within us.
It’s His temple. We desire that
that temple be as strong and as lovely as it can be. But we discipline that body remembering that
it is not the earthen vessel itself that gives us worth, it is the treasure
which that vessel holds (2 Cor. 4:7).
What makes us beautiful is the reality that (as Hopkins so marvelously expresses it):
Christ plays
in ten thousand places,
Lovely in
limbs, and lovely in eyes not his
To the
Father through the feature of men’s faces.
Dear friend, you are more beautiful than you think.
B.J. and the kids didn't have school today - "mid-term break" or something like that. So we visited the Freight Station Museum in nearby Greely this morning - you train buffs, we'll take you there when ya'll come out and visit. It's pretty neat! The photos don't do it justice - too dark in there.
The outside of the museum is basically a big warehouse.
The inside is an enormous HO scale model railroad, all built by hand.
The museum is staffed by numerous volunteers, all of whom were friendly and passionate about their hobby!
BJ and the kids in the top part of the big red caboose (see photo above).
I took this photo so you could get an idea of how detailed the scenery is - here's a burning building, working stoplights, flashing firetruck lights...
For you Michiganders - a model of the Edmund Fitzgerald.
Nath watching a smaller Thomas the Tank Engine set up.
One of many trestle bridges and a forest fire (bottom left).
Small town - notice the police car pulled someone over.
Caleb visited last month when he came to Colorado for the annual young adult's retreat. We were all glad to see him - especially Nathan, I think! He debated when to leave - Friday or Saturday morning. He opted for Friday since snow was predicted for Saturday. It's a good thing he left when he did - this is what we awoke to Saturday morning:
And today, April 15, looks much the same way...only more snow, I think! B.J. and the kids are home from school today.
P.S. Thank you to soon-to-be Uncle Joey for the Nate-Bert sword - he made one for Will and one for Nath at Christmastime.
hi. it's me. busy wife and mama...and [very] infrequent blogger as of late.
Anyway, my husband's been busy, too. Recently he taught his 6-8 grade science class about rockets. The students built water rockets out of 2L bottles, and B.J. put together a rocket launcher with some pvc pipe and our old air compressor. Some of those rockets really flew! (I think a few might still be hanging out on the church and school roofs.) The entire student body came out to enjoy the show.
(Who enjoyed themselves the most? I pick Beej and Karl. ;-)
Jordan's rocket really flew!
This rocket went straight up and almost straight back down.
Trivia: How many guys does it take to fix a water rocket? Ha-ha. Just kidding. ;-)
I think Leah's trying to catch a raindrop on her tongue...
Spectators.
More spectators.
And someone's skinny kid wandering around without a jacket on...Hey - wait a minute! I'd better go...
