Wonderfully Made

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”

Psalm 139:14

I was about 10 pounds away from my “pre-baby” weight when my son was 9 months old. One month later, we found out that we were expecting baby # 2. It has been a year now since her birth, and I have baby weight on top of baby weight to lose. It’s a struggle to get dressed each day because nothing really fits right, and we certainly don’t have the budget for me to buy a new wardrobe. I just don’t feel great because I can’t seem to find time to exercise, and I eat whatever is most convenient rather than what is healthy. It’s so easy to get down on myself about this, and it seems to be a common problem among women. Some of it is vanity, sure. I would love to be able to grab anything out of my closet and feel comfortable wearing it. Some of it is just feeling generally yucky because I don’t have time to take care of myself. I know I am a much better wife and mom when I feel better physically.

At the same time, what my body went through twice in the last two and a half years is pretty amazing. God used my body to grow a human being! God saw my children’s unformed bodies and knit them together in my womb. I had the miraculous experience of laboring and giving birth to them. I was blessed to be able to nurse them and still enjoy that relationship with my daughter. All of this from my physical being; “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain!”

I know I need to make time for exercise and make better food choices because I believe that God wants us to take care of ourselves. I also know that I may never look the way I did before having children. Instead of feeling depressed about it, I want to find ways to help myself get healthier while rejoicing in what brought me to this place in my life. I want to join David and say, “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”

Heavenly Father,

It’s easy to get caught up in things of this world like wanting to look a certain way. Help us to remember that we are wonderfully made whether we are a size 2 or a size 22. Give us the wisdom we need to find ways to take care of ourselves as we focus on taking care of our families.

In Jesus’ Name,

Amen.