As a former counselor who specialized in working with eating disorders, people would often ask me the question, “Don’t these girls already know they are thin enough?” Hmmm. I couldn’t answer that question. Why? Because when I asked it of my clients I’d often get a perplexed expression in return. They didn’t have an answer. Not one.
Thin enough? What does that mean?
I suppose thin enough would be the kind of weight that makes one happy. You see, the goal of becoming thin, is to be desirable, and even more important, in control. Supposedly, these things make a person happy.
We are told that being thin enough will help us achieve that result, so when it doesn’t (and it can’t), we assume we haven’t gotten there yet. So the only thing to do, is become more of the thing that didn’t achieve the goal in the first place.
I suspect it’s the same for those who have so much money they couldn’t spend it in a lifetime, and yet their primary goal is to accrue more.
Rich enough? What is that?
It’s another attempt at becoming happy. But does it ever get us there? I don’t think so, because it seems those who already have these things are still clamoring to increase them. Yet there are people who have so much less, muddling through the ups and downs of life, in what one might actually call Joy. Yes, they have sorrow, hard times and downright grief, but they are able to bounce back, view the bigger picture and be content. How does one achieve this feat if it can’t be received through riches and beauty?
The answer does not lie in gaining control of one’s life. More control means more responsibility, more worries to work through, more people to manipulate. The answer is in giving over control to the One who knows what to do with it. The One who always has the right answer. The One who thinks you are desirable because He made you perfectly for His purposes—to love and be loved. The only One who can bring you true Joy.
It’s not about becoming thinner, richer or even smarter. It’s about resting in the love of Your Father in Heaven. Now go get some rest :o).
Ecclesiastes 5:10-15 (NIV) “Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless …”
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Connie, great segment! I just linked it on my FB author page.
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