Relationships and Community on Body Image

illustration

The Perfect (Mythical) Woman

Author

Keywords

Scripture

Genesis 6:4-5, 2 Corinthians 10:12, Romans 12:6-8, 1 Corinthians 12:12-14, Psalm 139:14, Romans 12:4-5, Philippians 4:11-13

In her excellent little book (Mythical Me), Richella Parham begins by describing a single event that led to a personal journey into addressing her struggles with comparison. Having recently moved to a...

illustration

Nothing to Hide

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 139:23-24, Ephesians 5:11-13, Hebrews 4:13, Genesis 2:25, Genesis 3:7-11, Isaiah 47:3, Revelation 3:18

The relationship between wartime leaders Winston Churchill and Franklin Delano Roosevelt has been well chronicled by historians of the period. On one visit to the United States, Roosevelt wheeled hims...

illustration

The Quasimodo Complex

Keywords

Scripture

1 Samuel 16:7, James 2:1-4, 1 Peter 3:3-4, Proverbs 31:30, 1 Samuel 16:7, Psalm 139:13-14, Leviticus 19:14

Two decades after I worked with the airmen, I read a fascinating article, “The Quasimodo Complex,” in The British Journal of Plastic Surgery, Two physicians reported in 1967 on a landmark study of e...

Quote

Author

Gregory of Nyssa

Keywords

Scripture

2 Corinthians 3:18, Psalm 34:5, Isaiah 61:7, Hebrews 12:2, Romans 10:11, Isaiah 54:4, Psalm 139:14

Our godlike beauty is hidden beneath curtains of shame.

illustration

The Nebulous "They"

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Galatians 1:10, Colossians 3:23, Psalm 139:13-14, Proverbs 29:25, Romans 8:31, 1 Thessalonians 2:4, 1 Samuel 16:7, Romans 12:2, John 1:12

George Herbert Mead, an influential early 20th-century sociologist, coined the term “generalized other” to describe the vague group we consider when shaping our actions. How often do we behave a certa...

Quote

Author

Thomas Merton

Keywords

Scripture

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 , Isaiah 6:8, Jonah 1:1-3 & 3:1-3 , Matthew 16:24-26 , Philippians 3:7-14, Psalm 139:13-16

If you want to identify me, ask me not where I live, or what I like to eat, or how I comb my hair, but ask me what I think I am living for, in detail, and ask me what I think is keeping me from living...

illustration

Taking the Measure

Author

Jen Wilkin

Keywords

Scripture

1 Samuel 16:7, 1 Kings 18:33-35, Isaiah 55:8-9, Matthew 7:1-2, Psalm 139:1-3, Luke 6:38

One of my favorite movies is Hoosiers (1986). It tells the story of a small-town basketball team from Hickory, Indiana, that finds greatness under the leadership of their coach, Norman Dale. The...

illustration

One of the Major Functions of the Skin

Author

Sam Jarrett

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 139:13-14, 1 Timothy 4:4-5, Ephesians 5:29, Job 10:11, Genesis 1:27, 1 Corinthians 6:19

My wife was grading a science test at home that she had given to her elementary-school class and was reading some of the results to me. The subject was “The Human Body,” and the first question was: “N...

liturgy

Inspired by Psalm 139

Author

Darren Pollock

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 139:null

Leader: The Lord searches us and knows us. God discerns our thoughts and is acquainted with all our ways. People: Even the darkness is not dark to God; the night is as bright as the day, for darknes...

illustration

Recovering the Heart of Humanity

Author

Adam S. McHugh

Keywords

Scripture

Genesis 1:26-27 , Exodus 33:11-23 , Isaiah 43:1-4, John 10:1-15 , Luke 7:36-50, Psalm 139:1-6, 13-16

I am convinced that the scourge of our scientific and technological age is depersonalization. There is a heartbeat pulsating at the center of the universe, giving life and meaning to everything, but o...

illustration

Beloved: The Truth About Yourself

Author

Henri J. M. Nouwen

Keywords

Scripture

Jeremiah 31:3, Psalm 139:13-14, Romans 8:38-39, Isaiah 43:1-2, Deuteronomy 31:8, 1 John 3:1, Zephaniah 3:17

Every time you feel hurt, offended, or rejected, you have to dare to say to yourself: “These feelings, strong as they may be, are not telling me the truth about myself. The truth, even though I cannot...

liturgy

Adapted from Psalm 139 (NIV)

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 139:null

You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my w...

illustration

Life’s Greatest Trap

Author

Henri J. M. Nouwen

Keywords

Scripture

1 Peter 2:9-10, Romans 8:31-32, Psalm 139:1-4, Ephesians 2:10, John 21:15-19, Ephesians 3:17-19

Over the years, I have come to realize that the greatest trap in our life is not success, popularity, or power, but self-rejection. Success, popularity, and power can indeed present a great temptation...

Quote

Author

Isaac Asimov

Keywords

Assumptions

Scripture

2 Corinthians 10:5, Proverbs 3:5-6, James 1:5, Psalm 139:23-24, Matthew 7:3-5, Isaiah 55:8-9, Colossians 3:2

Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in a while, or the light won't come in.

Quote

Author

Julian of Norwich

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 33:8, Genesis 16:, John 10:11-18, Genesis 1:2, Matthew 6:26, Colossians 1:16-17, Psalm 139:13-14

And in this vision, he showed me a little thing, the size of a hazelnut, lying in the palm of my hand, and to my mind’s eye it was as round as any ball. I looked at it and thought, ‘What can this be?’...

Quote

Author

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Keywords

Scripture

1 Samuel 16:7, Jonah 4:1-11, Exodus 3:10-12 , John 1:46, Acts 10:34-35, Psalm 139:13-14

The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete.

illustration

Desperate for Attention

Author

Ashley Hales

Keywords

Scripture

Genesis 16:13, Exodus 33:14, Isaiah 49:15–16, Matthew 18:3–4, Luke 15:20–24, Psalm 139:1–3

We’re little children wandering the aisles of the internet because we’ve lost the presence of our loving parent. We are desperate for the attention of a good Father who sees us. We have no idea how to...

liturgy

Blessing the Women: A Prayer for Mother’s Day

Author

Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 139:13-14

Loving God, You knit us together in our mother’s womb and breathe us into being. Thank you for the gift of life and for bringing us into this world through our mothers. We recognize the risk they took...

Quote

Author

Augustine of Hippo

Keywords

Scripture

John 6:35, Psalm 27:4, John 4:1-26, Luke 10:38-42, Psalm 139:13-14, Ephesians 3:17-19, Psalm 63:1-4

What is it then that I love when I love you? Not bodily beauty, and not temporal glory, not the clear shining light, lovely as it is to our eyes, not the sweet melodies of many-moded songs, nor the so...

illustration

Follow the Bubbles

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Romans 8:26, John 14:26, Psalm 139:9-10, 2 Corinthians 5:7, Isaiah 42:16, Psalm 119:105

When I graduated from college I was given one of the greatest opportunities of my young life. A group of my friends were told that if we were able to purchase a flight to the Cayman Islands, we would ...

Quote

Author

Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Keywords

Scripture

Proverbs 18:17, Micah 6:8, Proverbs 19:11, Psalm 139:23-24, Romans 14:13

It is always easier for us to want to purify other people, and attempt a moral reformation among our neighbors. (Yet) how much have I helped to make her what she is?

Quote

Author

Augustine of Hippo

Keywords

Scripture

Luke 15:1-7, Matthew 18:10-14, Psalm 139:1-4, 1 Kings 19:, Genesis 16:, 1 Peter 5:7

You are good and all-powerful, caring for each one of us as though the only one in your care.

illustration

Caught on Camera

Author

Matt Chandler

Keywords

Scripture

Ecclesiastes 12:14, Genesis 39:6-12 , 2 Kings 5:19-27 , Luke 12:2-3, Psalm 139:1-4, Acts 5:1-11

Several years ago I saw a television show called Caught on Camera . It featured clips of people being secretly filmed doing all manner of horrific things, precisely because they thought they were...

illustration

This Child is a Gift

Author

Brennan Manning

Keywords

Scripture

Exodus 4:10-12 , Isaiah 49:15-16, 1 Samuel 16:7, Matthew 18:1-5, Psalm 139:13-16, 1 Corinthians 1:27-29

I will never forget the witness of an Episcopal priest named Tom Minifie several years ago in St. Luke’s Church in Seattle, Washington. He spotted a high-profile couple sitting in the last pew with th...

illustration

Why Starbucks is so Successful

Author

Donald Miller

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 139:13-16, Isaiah 43:1-4, Luke 15:3-7, Luke 15:11-32, 1 Corinthians 12:12-27, 1 John 3:1

Starbucks exploded by not just offering customers a cup of coffee but by giving them a comfortable, sophisticated environment in which to relax. Customers felt good about themselves when they walked i...

illustration

Which God Do You Believe In?

Author

Timothy Jennings

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 139:1-4, Luke 19:1-10, Ephesians 3:17-19, Philippians 4:8, Romans 5:5

Does it matter which God-concept we hold to? Recent brain research by Dr. Newberg at the University of Pennsylvania has documented that all forms of contemplative meditation were associated with posit...

liturgy

Prayer of Adoration We praise you, Lord

Author

Richard Herman

Keywords

Scripture

Luke 15:11-24, 1 John 1:9, Luke 22:54-62, Romans 3:23, Luke 19:1-10, Psalm 139:1-4, Job 38:1-4

Prayer of Adoration We praise you, Lord for you are all-wise and all-powerful, faithful, loving and gracious, holy, just, merciful, constant and pure, omnipresent, intimate and immortal. You are big...

liturgy

Even in our moments of doubt, our lack of faith

Author

Jacob Traeger

Keywords

Scripture

Romans 8:38-39, Mark 6:1-13, Romans 5:1, Psalm 139:1-18, Matthew 6:14-15, Mark 11:25-26, Acts 5:31

Even in our moments of doubt, our lack of faith, and the blindness which means we fail to see God amongst us, God is still at work. God is still healing. God is still forgiving. Even when you fail to ...

illustration

Home is Three Persons

Author

Jen Pollock Michel

Keywords

Scripture

John 14:23, Genesis 12:1, Psalm 139:7-10, Hebrews 13:14, 2 Corinthians 6:16

In her book Keeping Place: Reflections on the Meaning of Home, Jen Pollock Michel reflects on the nature of home in a transient age. In this short excerpt, Michel relates home to the Trinity, the ...

Quote

Author

Augustine of Hippo

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 6:13, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Ezekiel 36:26, Jeremiah 17:14, Psalm 139:23-24, Galatians 5:16, Psalm 51:10

Deliver me, O Lord, from that evil man, myself.

relationships and community on Body Image

illustration

illustration

illustration

illustration

illustration

illustration

liturgy

illustration

illustration

liturgy

illustration

illustration

liturgy

illustration

illustration

illustration

illustration

illustration

liturgy

liturgy

illustration

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

K

L

M

N

O

P

Q

R

S

T

U

V

W

Genesis

Exodus

Leviticus

Numbers

Deuteronomy

Joshua

Judges

Ruth

1 Samuel

2 Samuel

1 Kings

2 Kings

1 Chronicles

2 Chronicles

Ezra

Nehemiah

Esther

Job

Psalm

Proverbs

Ecclesiastes

Song of Solomon

Isaiah

Jeremiah

Lamentations

Ezekiel

Daniel

Hosea

Joel

Amos

Obadiah

Jonah

Micah

Nahum

Habakkuk