When it comes to how we look, what does that word even mean?
It’s probably safe to say most women don’t feel good about their bodies. There are many reasons for this — one being that it’s in many people’s best financial interests for women to be unsatisfied with themselves. Cosmetics companies and plastic surgeons come to mind. What would they do with women who see nothing wrong with the fact that they don’t look like a magazine ad?
For many Christian women, there’s an additional element that can make it tough to celebrate our bodies. Has someone ever complimented you on the way you look and you responded by playing it down, denying it, or feeling super uncomfortable? We often believe it’s improper and even boastful to speak well of our own body and to enjoy the way we look. In truth, however, it’s good to be being confident about your appearance and to be happy with your body.
There’s another reason we may have a hard time with how we look — from an early age we’re taught to look at our body through the prism of its shape, while ignoring it’s functional, biological, and physiological value — and all that makes our bodies perfectly-designed creations.
So, do you have a perfect body?
This simple quiz isn’t just for fun. It’s a way to check if your body is really “perfect.” Ask yourself:
- Does your body react to cold by shivering and to heat by sweating?
- Does your body feel pain if cut or hit?
- Do you feel hungry if you don’t eat at the usual time, or overstuffed if you eat an unusually large portion of food?
- Does your body feel pleasure at a wanted touch, and revulsion at unwanted touch?
- Does your body move according to your wishes — for example, right now you could move your right hand if you wanted to?
- If you have an infection, does your body react with a fever and/or weakness?
- Do you throw up when you drink too much alcohol?
- Is your body mass index such that your weight is not a threat to your health, and doesn’t increase the risk of having diseases related to being over- or underweight?
The whole truth about your body
If you answered yes to most of the above questions, there is good reasons to believe that your body is very close to perfection. On the other hand, if you answered yes to all the questions, then you’re the owner of a perfect body — a body that responds to your needs and reacts appropriately to emotional, atmospheric, and physiological changes. Your body work, it serves you, self-heals, warns you against danger, rejects what’s bad for it, and puts you to bed when you need time to recuperate.
Can you imagine a better biological construction, a better design? It’s hard to imagine. So, please appreciate your body, and see the truth — it’s perfect. What’s the next step? Let it be. Stop criticizing it. Love it.
Read more:
The number one thing moms can do to help their daughters develop a healthy body image
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What Miss America and ‘This Is Us’ can teach us about body image
