The perfect body. Ripped abs, round shoulders, muscular legs, nice glutes, toned arms...Isn't that what we all desire?
Well, at least it's what I've always desired; it's what I've worked so hard for the last 10 plus years. I absolutely LOVE lifting weights, but I'd be lying if I said I only do it because of the way it makes me feel; I also love the way it makes me look! It's a great feeling seeing your body transform from the hard work that you put into it.
But lately...my mindset has been changing. Or rather, God is changing it ;)
My body is just a temporary shell. When I die and go to Heaven no one is going to care that I had a lean stomach or muscular arms, right? At my funeral, people aren't going to say, "She really had a great body!"(Well, at least I hope that's not all that they would say of me!) I don't want to be seen as just someone with a good body, but as someone who loves God and loves people. I want to be a positive influence and role model in other’s lives, and not just because of the way I look.
Striving for satisfaction in the way you look (or anything apart from God, for that matter) makes me think of Solomon's words in Ecclesiastes:"it's all vanity and chasing after the wind". Pursuing anything besides God and His will is meaningless in light of eternity.
Well, at least it's what I've always desired; it's what I've worked so hard for the last 10 plus years. I absolutely LOVE lifting weights, but I'd be lying if I said I only do it because of the way it makes me feel; I also love the way it makes me look! It's a great feeling seeing your body transform from the hard work that you put into it.
But lately...my mindset has been changing. Or rather, God is changing it ;)
My body is just a temporary shell. When I die and go to Heaven no one is going to care that I had a lean stomach or muscular arms, right? At my funeral, people aren't going to say, "She really had a great body!"(Well, at least I hope that's not all that they would say of me!) I don't want to be seen as just someone with a good body, but as someone who loves God and loves people. I want to be a positive influence and role model in other’s lives, and not just because of the way I look.
Striving for satisfaction in the way you look (or anything apart from God, for that matter) makes me think of Solomon's words in Ecclesiastes:"it's all vanity and chasing after the wind". Pursuing anything besides God and His will is meaningless in light of eternity.
I know that God wants me to focus more on the things that will really matter in the long run: building His Kingdom,(not my own!), serving others, and thinking of myself and the way I look LESS. If I’m so
consumed with building my body, it doesn’t leave room for me to devote my life to God’s
purpose; in fact, it distracts me from His will and plan for my life. Yes, good things can become not so good when they pull us away from our relationship with Christ.
I want to desire Him more than anything else in life; I want to devote my life to His plan for me, and that is to love God with ALL of my heart, mind, and strength, and to love and serve others- NOT to have the perfect physique.
I want to desire Him more than anything else in life; I want to devote my life to His plan for me, and that is to love God with ALL of my heart, mind, and strength, and to love and serve others- NOT to have the perfect physique.
"Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last;
but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised..."
This does not mean that I am "giving up". I will always
strive to be healthy, fit and STRONG, but I am praying for God to give me
satisfaction in the way I look and to take away my desire for the “perfect” body. I no longer what that to be my goal-there are more important things to strive for in life!
It's not going to be easy-there are days when I find myself getting caught up in my training and obsessing over my nutrition. There are days when I look in the mirror and don't like what I see. But the good thing is that I don't have to rely on my own strength-He has said that His grace is all I need, that His power works best through weakness. So all I can do is give it to God and pray for Him to change my desires, to change my priorities, and to give me a willing heart to love and serve Him above ALL else.
It's not going to be easy-there are days when I find myself getting caught up in my training and obsessing over my nutrition. There are days when I look in the mirror and don't like what I see. But the good thing is that I don't have to rely on my own strength-He has said that His grace is all I need, that His power works best through weakness. So all I can do is give it to God and pray for Him to change my desires, to change my priorities, and to give me a willing heart to love and serve Him above ALL else.
Thanks for posting this! The balance between looking amazing and being healthy to glorify God with my body, can be hard to find sometimes!
ReplyDeleteIt is! I am sure it is something I will always struggle with. I can always tell when it is consuming me because I lose my peace and begin having anxiety as a result.
DeleteAMEN!! I had a huge conversation with another healthy living blogger this weekend about this very topic! So grateful for you and the light you are in this world!
ReplyDeleteThank you! :)
DeleteI struggle with worrying about being to vain as well. I love training but I also like how it makes me look. I picked something out about what you strive for... serving and helping others. I want you to know reading your blog really helps me, and while I don't know you personally, I am positive you are an amazing trainer and help your clients.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, I appreciate it!I don't think there is anything wrong with wanting to look good...but when it consumes your mind and you begin obsessing and having anxiety over it is when you know it has gone too far. Really, that is what it's about-taking care of our bodies so that we can serve others and be a positive influence in other's lives. If we're so consumed with ourselves(which is so easy to do!) we(I) lose sight of that sometimes.
DeleteThank you for this article;) I have the same struggles. I'm not a personal trainer or model or anything. .. just a mom who works part time. It's silly that looks would consume me, but they do. It's often my prayer, too. I'm so glad I found your blog! I saw your pic on bodybuilding.com awhile ago, but didn't know who you were. You were the one I showed my husband how I wanted to look! I found a link to you from beauty lies in strength, and was so excited. Thank you for being so open about you prayers.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much. It really is a struggle not to be consumed with my body and my looks and my training. I think it's easy for many people to obsess over it. It's not bad until it becomes something that pulls us away from our relationship with God and from giving ourselves to Him wholeheartedly. It's something I have to constantly pray about and ask God to reshape my priorities and my desires....And I can tell that He is doing that. Thanks again!
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