Oh how this picture makes me sad. It makes me sad because it says so bluntly what subtly goes on in many hearts, including mine. When we think about beauty, we think about self-improvement, determination, and the ability to control what we look and feel like. But what if I told you that it is so much more? What if I reminded you what God thinks of our bodies and appearance?

Right now, as we continue to puzzle out our New Year's Resolutions, there is a battle in our hearts (for New Year's Resolutions usually are heart-matters) but played out in our bodies. This battle can be summed up as this: are we going to live through our own eyes or God's?

Will we become consumed with self and make 2017, as the above Pinterest image declares, a year of selfishness?

Will we succumb to self-indulgence and ignore God's calling to live a healthy life about Him and not about us?

Or will we search God's Word for wisdom and trust Him as we walk this tightrope of healthy living and body image?

Will we keep Jesus as our vision as we respect the beauty and strength that He's put into our bodies but more importantly our hearts?

This is stinkin' hard to do, and so we're going to need some help if 2017 is going to be a year of real health and beauty. So, I've gathered up 12 verses representing 4 different truths about our appearance to put in our hearts and minds that we may better see beauty!

Let's make 2017 a year not of selfishness, but of Christ!

Truth 1: God Made You

When we truly believe that God- God- made us, then we are compelled to praise, not critique. Think about how complex and organized our bodies are, from the nervous system to taste buds. Think about how every person is unique and filled with beauty only they posses.

God put thought into making you, why do you want to look like anyone else?

Genesis 1:27,31

So God created mankind in his own image,
in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them...

God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.

Psalm 139:13-14

For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

Ephesians 2:10

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works,which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Truth 2: God Looks At The Heart

When God sees us, He doesn't see a number on a scale, an acne problem, or a bad hair day. He sees a child who needs love, a child He died to save. He sees a Kingdom worker. Thinking that we are ugly or not worthy is thinking that we can better discern our identity than God. Do we seriously think that our thoughts are more accurate than God's? We need to make our thoughts like God's thoughts, including our thoughts about what we look like.

1 Samuel 16:7

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

Proverbs 31:30

Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;

but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

1 Peter 3:3-4

Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes.Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.

Truth 3: Our Bodies Serve A Bigger Purpose Than Beauty

God made our bodies with a purpose, and this purpose is bigger than looking good. He made our bodies with the ability to serve, to celebrate, to go, to rest. He made our bodies with needs and strengths. We should take care of them and always keep in mind that they are to give glory to God.

1 Corinthians 6:20

You were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.

1 Corinthians 10:31

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.

1 Timothy 4:8

For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.

Truth 4: Trust Jesus, Not Diets

God is the great provider. He desires good things for His children, even if these things include discipline. It is when we stop trusting Him and start to try and control things on our own that our hearts get twisted and our souls suffer. God is calling us to know and trust that He is good, able, and perfect. Then we will more clearly see how to live a healthy life.

Ezekiel 28:17

Your heart became proud
on account of your beauty,
and you corrupted your wisdom
because of your splendor.
So I threw you to the earth;
I made a spectacle of you before kings.

Proverbs 3:7-8

Do not be wise in your own eyes;
fear the Lord and shun evil.
This will bring health to your body

and nourishment to your bones.

Matthew 6:31-33

So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

With these these truths and the power of the Holy Spirit, I pray with full confidence that we can start seeing beauty like God sees it. I pray over everyone reading this that 2017 will be the year that you discover your worth in Christ, the value in your body, and the purpose He's given you.

"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine." (Ephesians 3:20)