Welcome,
Let this be your pause today,
A quiet moment to return to truth,
To slow your breath,
To remember who you are,
Made in his image,
Created with intention,
Held in grace.
As you arrive here today,
I invite you to slow down,
Not to fix or improve anything,
But to simply be.
To take a deep breath and remember that you are already enough.
Breathe in and exhale slowly.
Again,
Breathe in peace.
Exhale every burden.
One more time,
Inhale truth.
And gently release any pressure or shame.
This is a space for grace.
If you've ever stood in front of a mirror and felt not enough,
Too much of this,
Not enough of that,
You're not alone.
The world tells us to critique,
To shrink,
To strive.
The world offers so many messages about our bodies,
What they should look like,
What size we should be,
How much we should weigh.
But God,
God looks at the heart.
God sees your strength,
Your beauty,
Your soul.
Scripture invites us to remember who we truly are.
Let these words from Psalm 139 wash over you.
Verses 13 through 16.
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.
My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place,
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.
Pause here for a moment.
You were knit together.
That word knit is intentional,
Not rushed,
Not careless.
Every thread of you was chosen with love.
Your worth is not found in your shape,
Size,
Or how you feel on any given day.
It was established by your creator before you took your first breath.
Let go of the lie that you have to look a certain way to be worthy of care,
Of peace,
Of rest.
Your body is not a problem to be solved.
It's a temple,
A vessel,
A reflection of God's creative goodness.
2 Corinthians 4.
16 reminds us,
Though outwardly we are wasting away,
Yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
You are being renewed day by day,
Even when you don't feel it,
Even when the mirror feels hard to face.
God doesn't measure you by your appearance.
He sees your heart,
He sees your spirit,
And He calls you good.
Let's reflect.
What would it look like to see yourself the way God sees you?
What would it look like to see yourself the way God sees you?
Inhale,
You made me on purpose.
Exhale,
I am wonderfully made.
Again,
Inhale,
You made me on purpose.
Exhale,
I am wonderfully made.
And now I want to close this out in prayer.
God,
Thank you for our bodies,
For the way it moves,
Holds,
Nurtures,
Carries us through each day.
Forgive us for the moments that we've seen it through a lens of judgment instead of grace.
Remind us that we are made in your image,
Fearfully,
Wonderfully,
Intentionally.
Help us to release the pressure to look a certain way and instead rest in the truth of who we already are in you.
Thank you for allowing us to see ourselves the way you see us.
Amen.
