I looked in the mirror, My face reflected there Showed lines of fear and worry, The strain of daily care. I looked into a quiet pool, Green branches framed my face. Snow-white cloud passed overhead, Some care seemed to erase.
I found myself in a shady nook My cares confessed to Him. I felt Him near and knew that He was looking deep within. I looked into His loving eyes; Reflecting back to me Was one I’d never truly known … The “Self” He’d helped me be. I looked into the mirror. Sweet peace reflected there. His perfect love had touched my life. He had erased all care.
In the book of Psalms, David writes in chapter 139 verses 13 and 14:
“for it was You who created my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I will praise You because I have been fearfully and wonderfully made”.
What does it mean to be fearfully and wonderfully made?
Fearfully when translated from the Hebrew means with great reverence, heart-felt interest, and with respect.
Wonderfully when translated from the Hebrew means unique and set apart.
Do you know you are unique and set apart? Do you feel the enormous amount of reverence, heart, and respect that went into your making?
“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. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.”
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
When we badmouth our bodies, we are insulting God, don’t you think?
Last week when our Presbyterian Women met, the Bible lesson we studied was the story of Bathsheba. It pointed out the secular take on who Bathsheba was may be flawed. Instead of a gorgeous seductress, she may have been the victim. Hollywood’s version of her is the perfectly gorgeous Rita Hayward.
Is that how you see Bathsheba?
The artists who have painted her have a different version:
I much prefer this one! A little bit of a double chin, a poochy stomach, and hefty thighs. Yes, I can relate! Now don’t you think she was fearfully and wonderfully made?
We’re all different in our body type – and yet God says we all are beautiful, lovable, and created in His image. Do you believe that about yourself? Even if you’re not perfect?
And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
Did you hear that? “… as yourself.”
Yes, you are fearfully and wonderfully made. Accept God’s love. Love yourself … and then You can love others!
Don’t let you body stiffen, and don’t let your mind stiffen either!
There are bodies of all shapes and sizes – All are made in God’s image – All are fearfully and wonderfully made!
And – hey guys, You don’t have to have a six-pack to be considered handsome!
Those old Charles Atlas ads are outdated – and those muscles don’t make the man!
That guy on the left is my Bob at the time we met – – – and his brother, Bill, on the right. They don’t look like that today, but they still are fearfully and wonderfully made – and their bodies have lasted into their mid-80’s!
Hah! Here’s Bob celebrating his 80th a few years ago with his younger brother, Bruce, and his brother-in-law, Stan. When asked, “What makes the man?”
Bob answered, “Character! A man who says what he’ll do and does what he says. A man of his word.”
Being fearfully and wonderfully made in the image of God means you are made a hero because you are made with the characteristics of heroism.
12 Characteristics of Heroism
Brave
Filled with Conviction
Courage
Determination
Helpful
Honest
Inspirational
Exhibiting Moral integrity
And that’s not just for you guys out there. Those are the qualities of a woman made in God’s image, too!
Add faithful to that list… It’s a part of honesty and being inspirational and moral integrity.
It’s faith that gives you that character Bob was talking about!
May God bless you today – Your mind and your body – Know for sure, my friends, you are fearfully and wonderfully made!
Believe it!!
Thanks for visiting JanBeek today. See ya tomorrow (God willing) Hugs!
https://dversepoets.com/ asked that we write a selfie poem today. You already know me – if you follow my blog. But, if you’re new to JanBeek, here’s a taste of who JanBeek is:
J olly A nd N aughty! E specially T alented at L oving. <3 A lways U ltra R esponsible and A ltruistic, B ut E ager to be E ntirely K ind! M ostly A uthentic and N ever mean.
Yes! That”s me!!
How about trying an acrostic – using your full name (including your middle name) to describe yourself?
This week Bob & I visited El Paseo Drive in Palm Springs, CA. It was a beautiful day to window shop those exquisite boutiques. But, ooh-la-lah, heaven forbid we go inside!! The prices are out of sight! However, if is is not a lovely shirt or a cute, little apron with a cute saying on it, then it is a convincing salesman with a free gift he is handing out in sweet little bags.
I made the mistake of accepting the bag and then being drawn into his shop where he had a “Miracle Cream.” He invited me to sit down so he could put it around one of my eyes. “Look at how it removes the puffiness and lightens the dark bags,” he said.
Bob followed me in and the slick salesman invited him to come and see how much better that eye looked. “We men don’t care about the aging process,” he told Bob. “But women – they care – and your wife would love this cream. If it can do this much in one very short treatment, imagine what it can do with weekly treatments over a few months!”
The salesman offered to throw in an additional jar of “finishing cream” for FREE …. if we would buy one jar of the miracle cream.
“How much?” Bob asked.
“Only two hundred…” he paused before quietly adding “ninety-nine” at the same time Bob was gasping at 200 and missed the 99. Wow, only $300. for that miracle cream. A bargain! Just think it’ll last a month or more!!
Aging Like Sea Glass
Yes, I have a well-earned patina! Yes, I add a few wrinkles with each passing year. Yes, my skin lacks the freshness of my youth. Yes, I care about AGING. In fact, I embrace it! It’s not true that men don’t care about it. They want to age like sea glass, too.
I want the wrinkles that come with age to be a beauty that expresses my inner peace and radiates my inner joy. This dear photo by Nandhu Kumar depicts a lovely lady whose face sparkles with an inner beauty and a well-earned patina that is envious! Don’t you agree?
This sweet man’s face and his gesture of affection radiates a love so real, so dear, so beautiful that only the waves of time can achieve it. His face reflects his journey – and the changes he has gone through to achieve that beauty. Hers, on the other hand appears to have endured many fewer tumbles through the tide. Maybe she’s his daughter … or maybe she used that “magic cream.” Her face doesn’t reflect the inner glow, however wrinkle-free it may be, does it? She looks a little apprehensive to me.
Outer Beauty
Don’t get me wrong; I am not opposed to outer beauty!! I don’t knock those who get monthly facials or buy expensive creams or have face lifts. (I actually put a pretty costly cream on my face every morning. It’s a Lacome – designed as a sunscreen and wrinkle reducer – hah!)
Look at this lovely “elderly” model. She has a job that requires special care of hair and skin. Gotta look good on camera! A few lines add character, don’t you agree? The only way to avoid those lines is to stop smiling, stop frowning, stop expressing emotion. Even Botox doesn’t take them all away!!
Yes, I’d like to reduce my frown marks (those railroad tracks on my forehead). I was warned when I was in my twenties that this would happen if I didn’t stop frowning. But how do you keep a straight face when you’re teaching a room full of twelve year olds or scolding a 4th grader who just punched a classmate? Why should you keep from smiling when you’re confronted with a class of giggling kindergarteners? How do you avoid the wrinkles on your nose when that’s what your face does a million times a day? My dog, TazE, doesn’t seem to mind!
Ride the Waves and Go With the Flow
I want to age like sea glass. I want my hard edges to soften. I want to be picked up gently and admired by those who appreciate what these 80 years of life have meant to them and to me… what I’ve learned, and what I can pass along. I want to enjoy the journey, and always remember to be grateful for each day the Good Lord gives to me. I want to ride the waves and go with the flow.
Do you have a goal that you’ve been working to accomplish? Does it seem that the harder you work toward it, the farther away it seems to be?
Sometimes trying to accomplish a goal is like eating a bowl of spaghetti. You take a bite and the pasta grows to fill the hole you thought you’d made!
My Goal
The pasta growth is a perfect example for me to use today because my goal is to get back to my “Goal Weight.” I had a potluck at my house yesterday – and lasagna was the main dish. It was soooo good! But, this morning at TOPS, it showed up as .75 of a pound on the scale!!
I was the Queen of the State of Montana TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) back in I don’t remember when… 2013 or so. Earned that status by reaching my goal weight and in the process losing 30+ pounds that had crept up on me over about a 30 year period.
Then like that pasta that fills the void, over the next few years, ten of those pounds have crept back on. My body has settled at this and decided it likes this place on the scale. Well, I don’t!
Arguing with Self & Others
Some of my TOPS friends tell me I should change my goal weight. Afterall Jan, at 80 you’re not supposed to look like you did at 30! Well, that’s not my goal. I just wanna look and feel like I did when I had 10 pounds less than I do now. Thirty was nice, but it’s unrealistic for me now. I’d look gaunt!
Here I am almost 50 years ago when my daughter (who will be 52 tomorrow) was about five years old. (Yes, I sewed our matching dresses. Awww… how cute!)
Well, she doesn’t look like that anymore, so why should I? Here we are now:
Still got that sparkle. Still love each other to the moon and back. Both still healthy and thanking God daily for our vitality and ability to travel and spend time with each other annually (DeAna lives in Switzerland).
So Why Argue?
When I was ten pounds lighter, my clothes looked better on me. I was able to bend down and tie my shoes without getting out of breath. (Yes, 10 extra pounds makes that kind of difference). I had lower blood pressure. I felt better about myself. So, it’s a goal worth persuing – and an accomplishment worth keeping. This yo-yo-ing is not good for me… 2 lbs down in two weeks and the one week later it’s back. (Why does it come back so much faster than it comes off?)
Here I am with my granddaughter, Hope,
when I was on my way down – almost to my goal weight.
And my sis, Sally, and my hubby Bob with me at goal weight.
Keep the Tiny Spark Glowing!
The goal you are striving to accomplish may not be a big fiery flame for all to see, but a tiny spark that whispers to you. You know you can do it. The spark keeps whispering, “You can do this! Don’t give up!” Keep the spark alive.
Other people may not think it is important … whatever that personal goal is… but YOU DO! And so it is worth persuing. Stick with it!
Keep going! You got this!
I was TOPS biggest loser last week. I can do it again.
Keep those damn pounds off.
Forget about that pasta hole!!
Eat less carbs.
Oscar winner, Lupita Nyong’s speech on Beauty left an entire audience speechless. It left me awed and impelled to share it. I posted a link on my FaceBook page and I copied a couple paragraphs here to whet your appetite.
” I received a letter from a girl and I’d like to share just a small part of it with you: “Dear Lupita,” it reads, “I think you’re really lucky to be this Black but yet this successful in Hollywood overnight. I was just about to buy Dencia’s Whitenicious cream to lighten my skin when you appeared on the world map and saved me.”
My heart bled a little when I read those words. I could never have guessed that my first job out of school would be so powerful in and of itself and that it would propel me to be such an image of hope in the same way that the women of The Color Purple were to me…”
To watch Lupita and hear the rest of her speech, click on the link below. If that doesn’t work, please find the posting on my FB page. Believe me, it is worth the time and effort to hear this delightful acceptance speech. She delivered it accepting an award for Best Breakthrough Performance at the seventh annual Black Women in Hollywood Luncheon.
