Tailor-Made
My assigned book for class in this unit is “Tailor Made” by Alex Seely and it has been teaching me a lot about my worth and value. Ever since I was a little girl I have been fixated on how I looked, whether that was showing off my pink gel sandals or putting multiple barrettes in my hair. I would often observe the way my father looked at women. We would be walking down the street and I would catch him looking at them up and down. These women would typically be skinny with little to no clothing on. Sometimes he would holler or whistle. I remember being told that boys would like my small waist and bright green eyes. This distorted my view of a woman's purpose. I thought that our purpose was to strictly please men. Growing up I witnessed women all around me, including myself, being treated poorly by men. I thought this was the way it was supposed to be.
When I got older, I would pick out clothes and think, “I hope guys like this.” This caused me to start dating very young and engage sexually. My first relationship was with a drug addict and I learned that using drugs helped to numb the way I was feeling about being used constantly. I started starving myself and continually using drugs to fill the void I felt inside. Honestly, I just couldn’t stand myself. A lot of us think we aren’t good enough and are constantly criticizing our bodies. We turn to plastic surgery, working out, dieting, or eating disorders. All in an effort to have the “perfect body,” but such a thing doesn’t exist. Instead, we find ourselves stuck in a cycle of comparing ourselves to others and trying to reach unrealistic beauty standards. What we don’t realize is that God made us all individually unique. He took His time making us.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 says, “Don’t you realize that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself for God bought you at a high price, so you must honor God with your body.”
So I want to challenge you to love yourself more just the way you are, the way God made you! Be kind to yourself because, in God’s eyes, you are perfect even when you’re in process. He made you just the way you are supposed to be. Our bodies are the dwelling place of God’s Holy Spirit and they belong to God. We all have a purpose on this earth, even if we don’t know it yet. You were made for a reason and with a purpose. Springboard has helped to shift my view of myself and my worth so I hope that this encourages you today as well.
~Springboard Student, Age 16
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