Work In Progress

When I studied abroad in my sophomore year of college, I got to see many sights that took my breath away.

A sunset in Florence Italy from the Piazza Michelangelo overlooking the Duomo,

The Eiffel Tower lighting up the Parisian sky, tiny sparkles reflecting on the windows of the city,

The crystal clear water of the Mediterranean Ocean.

But there is one sight that I never had the chance to visit, that as I sit in my room in Athens Georgia, I desire so greatly to see.

Gaudi's Sagrada Familia, in Barcelona Spain.

And it's not because I have this deep desire to see Spain.

And it's not because I'm a fan of his work.

And it's not because the architectural structure was, and still continues to be ahead of it's time.

No, I simply desire to see what many call Gaudi's masterpiece, because today, 130 years after construction began, it still remains unfinished.

And I think that's they way God looks at us.

Lately, I've been having a hard time with this idea of a lifestyle change.

That this new healthy lifestyle that I've begun isn't something I'm ever going to be something I can just give up on completely.

It's a process.

A way of life.

Something I'm going to have to continue and learn along the way.

And the same principle goes for my body as I continue along this path.

My body isn't going to change overnight.

And even when my body does change, my thoughts about my body aren't going to change overnight.

Everyday, when I look in the mirror, I have to make a conscious effort-

How am I going to think about my body today?

Am I going to see how far I've come?

Or am I going to see how far I have to go?

Am I going to choose to look at all my beautiful features?

Or am I going to choose to look at those thighs that might be just a smidge too big, or the arms that might be just a bit too jiggly?

And that process, every morning, can be exhausting,

And frustrating,

And downright discouraging.

Why can't I ever look just the way I want to look?

And why can't I get my brain to understand that the way I look is perfect in the sight of God?

But this morning, as I was reading Philippians, I found a verse that really struck a cord in my heart, and began to bring the way God sees me into focus.

⁶ being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

I am a work in progress.

A work in progress that God sees and deems as good.

And just like the Sagrada Familia, my beauty won't just magically appear when this work is done,

My beauty becomes evident from the work that is being done in the process.

My beauty becomes evident in the struggle, because God is with me in the struggle.

My beauty become evident in the doubts, because I serve a Lord that continues to whisper truths.

My beauty becomes evident in the moments of dissatisfaction, because I have a heavenly father that looks at me and is nothing but satisfied.

My beauty becomes evident because I am a child of a King who will never stop working on, and in me.

And even on those days when I look in the mirror and think " I have so far to come"

I have to know that the Lord looks in the mirror and thinks " Sure, we have some work to do. But look how beautiful you already are? Why are you doubting my handiwork?"

So, today, when I look in the mirror, I'm going to try to stand in that truth. 

The truth that I am the handiwork of the same God that created the sunset over the city of Florence, the Parisian night sky, and continues to watch over the work of the Sagrada Familia.

And my worth comes from the fact that I'm still a work in progress.