As you walk down the hall at school or work, you see that group of people who were laughing and conversating loudly grow quiet, and their eyes become dodgy as you walk by. You hear a hurtful comment that was not intended to be heard by you. Or maybe, like me, someone has whispered all of the things that they didn’t like and that you should fix about yourself. Maybe a friend, significant other, or family member makes a joke about your body, your failures, or your shortcomings… But it’s not really a joke. Sometimes, other people do not even have to be involved. When you look in the mirror, you say to yourself, “If I could just change this or that or look like her, then I would feel loved and worthy.” When you make a mistake or don’t get that job or promotion, you think, “Well, I knew I wasn’t good enough in the first place. I’m an idiot for thinking I could get that”. Or maybe it’s on a deeper level when a loved one betrays you… Because then you think to yourself, “Maybe no one loves me… Maybe I’m not even worthy to be loved.”
I deeply pray that no one reading this has ever felt any of the things listed above. But I would be naïve to think that that was the truth. Because for women, this happens all the time. These thoughts are constantly going through our heads even though we have heard all the Bible verses and all the sermons about body image and who we are in Christ. These thoughts and situations happen so often that we begin to believe that we aren’t pretty enough, good enough, successful enough, smart enough, worthy enough, or truly loved. So, how do we begin to believe that we are “fearfully and wonderfully made,” “created in His image,” loved by God with an “unfailing love,” and that he has a plan for us to give us “a hope and a future”?
A few years ago, I was introduced to this beautifully written children’s book by Max Lucado titled You are Special. It is a children’s book, but to this day, I get teary-eyed reading it. I highly suggest you read it if you have not. It is about this wooden boy named Punchinello who was a Wemmick.
Wemmicks stuck stars on others when they did something they thought was good or if they thought they looked good. However, the Wemmicks stuck dots on others when they failed at something or looked rough with their paint chipping. Punchinello had a lot of dots…
Others told him he was not a good wooden person. Then, he met a girl who did not have any dots or stickers. It wasn’t that others did not give her dots or stars, but they just didn’t stick. When the boy questioned her about it, she said she went to see their creator every day, the woodcarver, and he got rid of them. This information made Punchinello curious since he was covered in so many dots. So, he went to see the woodcarver. This is where the story turns.
When Punchinello walks into the shop, the woodcarver, Eli, calls him by name. He knew his name because he created him. When Eli notices all the bad marks, he tells Punchinello. “What they think doesn’t matter. All that matters is what I think. And I think you are pretty special”.
Punchinello then did what all of us do. He told his maker all his shortcomings. He asked why he matters to Eli. Eli then responds, “Because you are mine.” Punchinello asks why his new friend’s stickers don’t stick on her. Eli says, “She has decided that what I think is more important than what they think. The stickers only stick if you let them… The more you trust my love, the less you care about their stickers”. Punchinello still does not quite understand how that works. So, Eli instructed, “It will take time. You’ve got a lot of marks. For now, just come to see me every day and let me remind you how much I care”. As Punchinello left the shop, Eli said, “Remember, you are special because I made you. And I don’t make mistakes”.
Punchinello believed him, and a dot fell to the ground.
So, to answer the question stated earlier: “How do we begin to believe that we are fearfully and wonderfully made, created in His image, loved by God with an unfailing love and that He has a plan for us to give us a hope and a future?” I think it is helpful to look at Punchinello, and his creator Eli.
In order to truly believe those promises, we must first remember to whom we belong. Isaiah 43:1 states,
“I have called you by name, you are mine.”
In this scripture, the Lord is talking to His people, reminding them that his relationship with them is personal and certain. God created us, and he knows our name. He knows us. He knows everything about us, including our shortcomings. Yet, He calls us His children, and He wants us. We are wanted.
Next, we have to decide whose voice we want to listen to. Eli told Punchinello that the stickers only stick if you let them and that the more he trusted his creator’s love, the less he would care about others’ opinions. In order to do this, Punchinello was going to have to spend time with his creator every day. For us to be able to focus on and believe what God says about us, we are going to have to spend time with Him in prayer and in the Word. This way, we will be reminded how much he loves us and cares about us.
Finally, we have to remember who our Creator is. Our Creator is God, and He is a perfect, spotless, flawless God who does not make mistakes. He created us in His image, as stated in Genesis 1:27. When we tell ourselves the things we wish were different about our bodies, we insult God’s creation. We are telling Him, the perfect, flawless God, that we think He made a mistake. We are telling Him we think we could have done a better job.
Eli reminds us that believing the promises that God says about us and releasing those insecurities will not happen overnight. It will take time. But when we truly believe what God says and spend time with him, the dots will begin to fall off. But we must believe what Eli said:
“The more you trust my love, the less you care about their stickers.”
“You are special because I made you. And I don’t make mistakes.”
“The stickers only stick if you let them.”
Kristie Brothers
Lean into Jesus Ministries
#kristiebrothersblogs