{i heart the skinny mirror}

You all know what I'm talking about whether or not you have ever named them: the skinny mirror, and the not so skinny mirror. Some clothing retailers get this small dressing room nuance completely right. Some just do not. With a certain tilt of the mirrored glass and the precise angle of the lighting fixture, a shopping experience can be glorious or disastrous.

On a regular trip to my favorite store with a friend, I encountered the not so skinny mirror. Those darling jeans clung to the wrong curves. That chic tank top did nothing for my figure. The bathing suit was beyond description. Within a matter of minutes the thrill of the bargain buy accelerated into a tailspin of self-critique. My mind was consumed with how I looked as I allowed the not so skinny mirror to determine my mood for the rest of the afternoon.

But before I infected my shopping partner with my self-pity, I felt the Lord say in my heart something I have not forgotten since this whole run in with that ill-fated mirror.

Meghan, your beauty and worth are not determined by what you see in a mirror. Take your focus off of yourself and find focus on Me.

Find focus on Him. A sense of relief came over me as I inhaled and exhaled those words.

These four words have become my battle cry when I face both the not so skinny mirror and the skinny mirror. Anytime I am more consumed with myself than I am with God, I focus on everything that is wrong in my life. {Hence the episode mentioned above!} On the flip side, anytime that I am more consumed with God than myself, I am better equipped to walk out of that dressing room with the understanding that I am ok. I recount the ways that He thinks I am beautiful; reminded that I am His creation and He finds me special.

So, I find focus on Him and I get over myself. It's a simple yet complicated truth, but one worth playing over and over in my mind. Maybe one day, God won't have to give me the pep talk as I step before the not so skinny mirror. But for now, I will go on facing it with His truth in my heart.