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High School, Middle School, Self-Image

Let’s Talk About Body Image

We know body image is a topic that our girls face every time they open up an app, look in the mirror, or walk around in their day to day lives. They are presented with waves of photoshop perfection, then body positivity, then comparison of their body shape and size to others around them. Wave after wave, the body image battle continues to hit our girls.

I believe the battle with body image often creeps into our girls minds when they are alone, but the enemy will also whisper lies to them when they are surrounded by friends. We need to be equipped to help our girls fight as the devil continues to hit them with waves of self-doubt.

First, we need to remind our girls who their Creator is.

As simple as this may seem, we have to identify the One who created us to truly respect and appreciate who we are made to be. God created the beautiful skies that we are quick to put on Instagram stories, because the beautiful colors have been painted just right by our Eternal Father. We easily appreciate the beautiful flowers that the Lord clothed and allowed to grow and flourish. It is easy for us to see the beauty in the rest of creation, yet when our girls look in the mirror, they are struggling with what they see. I pray they see and appreciate the beauty staring back at them. God created us in His image and said it was good. Now, it is our job to teach our girls, that are able to see the beauty in creation so easily, how their beauty is magnified by being made in the image of God.

Check out Genesis 1 and Psalm 139 for helpful verses to teach our girls about their Creator and what it means to be made in His image.

Next, we need to talk about the elephant in the room: comparison.

Comparison is the thief of joy. Well, it is not a surprise that comparison is the thief of joy when we know that the devil comes to steal, kill, and destroy. But because we know that comparison is a tactic from the enemy, we can have a plan in place for our girls. We can teach them to be rooted in Biblical truth to combat every lie from the enemy.

Check out 2 Corinthians 10, James 3:14-16, Romans 12:1-2, and Philippians 2:1-4 for helpful verses on combatting comparison, selfish-ambition, jealousy, and other lies from Satan.

Last but not least, we need to demonstrate how to speak life.

What does that mean? We need to speak into each of our girls the many beautiful things that we see from their heart, mind, and appearance. It’s important to tell our girls how proud we are of them when we see their heart and the passion the Lord has placed in their heart. It is also vital for us to speak up and call out what we see God fashioning in their minds. Lastly, it is important for us to speak life about their appearance by giving our girls genuine compliments.

You may be thinking, why would I comment on these things? We need to comment on our girls’ hearts, minds, and appearance because the world is. It is important that our girls hear what God and His Word has to say and not just what the world has to say. It is crucial that we teach them what God says about the wonderful ways how He formed them and made them as often as we can.

Check out 1 Peter 3, 1 Samuel 16:7, and Galatians 5:22-26 for helpful verses on recognizing what God cares about and how to acknowledge those things in our girls.

The goal is for our girls to see themselves how the Lord sees them. They will be able to look in the mirror and call out the uniquely beautiful things about themselves in the mirror, in the classroom, and in their lives. They will start to show up more and more confident by walking in who God says they are. I pray our girls are so rooted in Scripture and so fervent in prayer that when the waves of the world come, they will not be shaken. They will know their worth and that their beauty is not found in anyone besides their beloved Creator. Because our teen girls are already fully loved, known, and seen by Him.

Jillian-Murphy-Deaton-Photo

Jillian Deaton has a passion for showing people the love of Christ through speaking, writing, and everyday life. She is the wife to second lieutenant Jaxson Deaton. Jillian is a graduate of Oklahoma Baptist University. She is the author of Powerfully Weak, This is Why, The Four Seasons of Hope, as well as the co-author of A Bigger Purpose. She is passionate about sharing God’s Word with students and women of all ages! She believes no matter who you are or where you’ve been the Word of God is relevant to your life as you strive to live with authentic faith in Christ. Connect with Jillian: Instagram