Loving Myself...“We all have our imperfections, but we’re human and we know it. It's important

As I looked in the mirror, I was feeling the soft curves of my body, all the way down to the flesh on my belly to where it met my hips. I wasn’t pleased with the reflection in the mirror. I frowned…I frowned at my “belly pooch”, as I pinched my skin between my fingers. I had a name for my belly pooch, and the other not so desirable places on my body.

I called those places “my chubs”.

The problem is that I was frustrated with myself – I allowed other people’s words and actions to feed my worst enemy, my inner critic.

And, there are days when my inner critic can be extra cruel.

Like countless people out there, I’ve put my body through a lot with the latest diet trends -- from keeping track of my calories, to the slow-carb diet, the no carb diet, vegetarianism, to even eating only one meal a day. It’s not cute walking around hungry, but I was constantly looking for something to help me feel beautiful on the outside.

Not only did I allow other people’s words and action to feed my inner critic, I fed into the media’s portrayal of a beautiful woman whenever I picked up a magazine, turned on the television and looked at a billboard.

It’s human nature to want what you don’t have…

I could easily blame others for how I negatively feel about myself, but I won’t.

I’ve realized that I need to take full responsibility of my own emotions…these are MY emotions. We all need to take responsibility of our own emotions.

The only person, who can decide you’re good enough, smart enough, and beautiful enough, is you. Shifting your mindset on how you feel about yourself can, and will radically change your life.

Yes, we need to accept and embrace the reality of our situations, but in order to do so, we must first accept ourselves, no matter what we look like. We must silence the negative voices that keep us from embracing our beauty (imperfections), and embracing who God created us to be. I choose self-acceptance.

Keep in mind, the difference between those who are happy and those who are not, is how they choose to manage their emotions, their perspective of the world, and themselves. I choose to love me!

You can’t control people’s opinion of you, but you can control how you respond to them. By basing your emotions on what you can’t control (people and life circumstances), you’re essentially creating more suffering for yourself. I choose self-confidence.

It may not always be easy, especially if you’re accustomed to letting your inner critic guide your life. But, by taking a daily step toward self-love and acceptance, you’ll reach the total freedom to love yourself and live a life based on truth, and not lies. I choose self-acceptance.

The first truth is that, we are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14).

When I look in the mirror now, I smile. I’ve allowed myself to love myself and I’m no longer afraid to embrace and accept my beauty (imperfections).

We are God’s masterpiece (Ephesians 2:10)… I choose truth!

Chubs and all.