Hi Parents:
​Many teens (and adults!) struggle with healthy body image.   Not being thin in a world that screams skinny is hard.  We're constantly told we need to look younger, hide our wrinkles, cover up our imperfections.   These pressures can often lead to binge eating and fad diets, and at its extreme, can lead to eating disorders and unhealthy relationships with food.

God created each of us with unique bodies that respond differently to food.  I love to eat dessert and junk food, but usually don't feel good if I do.  A diet that helps one person to be healthy does not always work for someone else.  And listening to the opinions of others instead of the needs of our own bodies can create a struggle.

Ask your teen...
​Have them take a minute to think about: what you are good at?   Who are you in Christ?  How does God see you?
Do you believe that God loves you for who you are, not how you think you should look?   Read Psalm 139:14

​Challenge your teen...
​Start small....if their eating habits aren't good for them, challenge them to make only one change at a time.  Pick one thing they'd like to change about their eating habits and start on only that.

​Ask for help...find a friend to be an accountability partner.  Even if they don't eat the same things, your teen and their friend can encourage each other to eat foods that feed their body and souls.

​If body image is a struggle, invite them to take some time out of each day to build their confidence and self-esteem....spend time with God.   Tune out the world and think about what God desires for you.  Write down the words to your favorite worship songs or verses.   Read in the Bible about how God cares for them.   Journal their thoughts.   Making this a daily or even weekly habit can help them feel loved for who they are in God's eyes!

Prayer...
Loving God, I struggle to love myself as you do.  Teach me to see my value in things that truly matter.  I am enough.  Help me to believe that truth.  Amen.

Hey Parents!
​When the disciples and other followers of Jesus gathered together on the day of Pentecost, they were accused of being drunk (Acts 2:1-15).  We know they weren't drunk; but all those who were there that day had been filled with the Holy Spirit, which changed the way others saw them.  Some may have been concerned about how others perceived their behavior.  But these believers had been waiting for this moment, and they weren't going to let anything stop them from receiving the Holy Spirit!  What they experienced that day was far more important than worrying about what society might think.  

​When we state that we are Christian, it isn't just a label that we put on.  It is an indicator of what our lives will be - of how we will act, even if our behavior seems strange or uncool to others.  So we sit with the outcasts, help those in need, and show kindness to those who insult and persecute us.  We don't do these things so that others will know who we are; we do them because that is who we are.  We don't do these things to influence what others think; we do them because that is what Christ calls us to do.

​Do you know how special you are?  There is no one else like you!  Not one of the 7.5 billion people on this planet has your fingerprint.  You are unique in all the world.  More important, you are created in the image of God, who loves you more than you can imagine.  

In today's society we are constantly bombarded with the opinions of our peers.  On social media or in person, everyone has something to say.  How do we process all of these opinions and stay true to ourselves?  How do we even find our true selves in a world that has its own ideas about who we should be? 

Caring too much about what others think can tempt us to put on a mask so that few people ever get to see who we really are.  And in our pretending, we too might lose sight of who we are.  If we could stop worrying about what others think, imagine how much more freer we would be.  We would be able to do what we really wanted and to become the person God sees in us.  Let's be ourselves, not who others want us to be.  Paul says, "I am not trying to please people... If I were doing that, I would not be a servant of Christ." (Galatians 1:10 CEV).

Ask your child...
What does the life you live say about who you are?
​How has taking on the name "Christian" transformed the way you live?
​Challenge your child...
​Today, I challenge you to stop living in fear of judgment and to live in the grace that Christ freely lavishes on you.
Prayer...
Father, help me to stop living in the fear of judgment and live only in your grace.  Amen.​