Self-Esteem: Do you Ever Feel Like You are Breaking the Mirror?

The above picture is of Brooke from an episode of One Tree Hill

If there is one thing I struggle with as much as my weight issues it is self-esteem.  I am very critical of how I see myself and am very concerned with how others see me.

Take a moment to close your eyes and draw up a mental picture of yourself.  Who are you as a person in your mind?  What do you look like?  What are your good at?  What are your weaknesses?

Is this mental picture of yourself an accurate depiction of who you are as a person?  Or are you easily critical and over emphasis your "flaws"?

Did you know that we develop our self-image starting from a very young age?  We begin to base our self-image in life experiences and interactions we have with other people.  This self-image, or mental picture, is what contributes to our self-esteem (see "How Can I Improve My Self-Esteem").

The Dove Real Truth About Beauty research found that by the age of 14 more than half (55%) of Canadian girls already feel pressure to be beautiful.  By the time they are 29, this number increases to 96%.  After the age of 14, girls increasingly become their own worst beauty critic.  While only 10% of girls 10-14 put pressure on themselves to be beautiful, this number climbs to 59% of women 18-16 (taken from "Surprising Self Esteem Statistics").

These numbers are scary to me.  Being a Mom of two young girls I see these numbers and cringe.  It is one of the reasons that I constantly remind my girls that they are beautiful.

Yet it is so easy for me to say this to my girls but increasingly harder for me to believe it myself.  

If there is one thing that I dread more than the numbers on the scale, it is standing in front of a mirror naked.  Let me introduce you to my mind as I stand there:

Look at yourself.  How could your husband possibly be attracted to you in that way.  Look at your stretch marks.  Their hideous.  And have you seen your stomach lately?  Nothing but loose, jiggly skin.  I don't even want to start talking about your posterior.  Seriously, Laura.  You need to do something about this.  How can you stand yourself?

Harsh isn't it?  Yet for me, this is my cruel reality.  

It is only through prayer and petition to God that I am able to slowly begin to focus on something more than my outer appearance.

The Bible talks a lot about self-esteem and appearance.

1 Samuel 16 vs 7 says "But the Lord said to Samuel, 'Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks at the outward appearance but the Lord looks on the heart.' "

Song of Solomon 4 vs 7 says "You are altogether beautiful, my love; there is no flaw in you."

Psalm 139 vs 13 to 14 says "For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb.  I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.  Wonderful are your works, my soul knows it very well."

Lastly, one of the most important verses, in my opinion, when it comes to self-esteem issues:

Genesis 1 vs 27 says "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them."

We are created in His image.  How then can I see myself in the manner that I do?  

There is only one answer for that one.  It is Satan's way of drawing us away from having that close and deep loving relationship with our heavenly father.

Dear Friends, if low self-esteem is something that you struggle with please know that you are not alone.  Write on your hearts the above passages and know that we have a loving heavenly Father who wants us to see ourselves as He sees us. 

One who is created in His image; one who is fearfully and wonderfully made.