Mirror, Mirror on the Wall.

If we are honest with ourselves how we look is important. We all want to look "good" but who defines what "good" is?

According to USA Today this past year 12-18 year old's will have spent 150 BILLION dollars on clothes or cosmetics, with 19-24 year old's will spending close to 250 billion dollars. Let those dollar figures soak in for a second, because that's a ton of money.

Think about a normal day for you, and the number of advertisements you will see daily. The average teenager sees thousands of ads daily, from facebook, to commercials we are bombarded with pictures and phrasing implying that we can look and feel better is we eat, buy, or try this. The sad part is, we literally buy what they are selling us.

We are feed lies daily that essentially we aren't pretty enough, fit enough, small enough, tall enough, strong enough, and ect... Therefore we are willing to spend and do whatever it takes to be what the world tells us to be. But where does that lead us? No where. Sure that new shirt makes us feel good the first few times we wear it, but in a month there is something "cooler" out. That new car may make you feel good about yourself for a while, but sooner or later you'll see a car nicer than yours. So where does that lead us? Back to wanting more. We are never left satisfied or happy. 

As the old saying goes, money can't buy you happiness, and if we are honest with ourselves, that's a true statement. The world wants to tell us we aren't special,  pretty, or unique. How does that leaving you feeling?

God tells us a radically different story though. Take a look at Psalm 139: 13-18

[13] For you formed my inward parts;
        you knitted me together in my mother's womb.
     [14] I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
    Wonderful are your works;
        my soul knows it very well.
     [15] My frame was not hidden from you,
    when I was being made in secret,
        intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
     [16] 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.

    [17] How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
        How vast is the sum of them!
     [18] If I would count them, they are more than the sand.
        I awake, and I am still with you.

We see three things here that help us achieve the right self image.

1. God formed us. We aren't from monkeys, or the result two clouds of chemicals exploding. The Bible says God formed you. You are instantly valuable because God doesn't make things by accident. You are a one of kind.

2. We are made in the image of God. David says we are fearfully and wonderfully made. In other words, God did such an awesome job in making us that David is left in reverent awe of God.

3. God values our uniqueness. God desires to have a relationship with us. Ever think about someone so much that they are"always" on your mind? David says that God values and loves us so much that His thoughts for us each day are more than grains of sand on the beach. That's a lot of thoughts. We are literally always on God's mind.

The Bible teaches that true joy and happiness isn't going to be found in the world tells you, it's found in Jesus. Stop listening to world, and start listening to the one who made it, because He desperately wants to have a relationship with you.

Notes and thoughts from Nathan Rogers at D-Now in Benton, Ky.