Lately, I’ve been trying to eat healthier and work out more often because my honey and I are going on a Caribbean cruise this spring. And I want to be thin. I want to be confident in a swimsuit, and I want my honey to be proud of the way I look. As a result of this, I have been looking on Pinterest (where else?) for inspiration, and I am surprised at what I have found.

photo credit: AllWomensTalk.com

Yikes. Is that what I really want?

The first reading this past Sunday was Proverbs 31: 10 – 13, 19 – 20, 30 – 31

When one finds a worthy wife,
her value is far beyond pearls.
Her husband, entrusting his heart to her,
has an unfailing prize.

She brings him good, and not evil,
all the days of her life.
She obtains wool and flax
and works with loving hands.
She puts her hands to the distaff,
and her fingers ply the spindle.
She reaches out her hands to the poor,
and extends her arms to the needy.
Charm is deceptive and beauty fleeting;
the woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.
Give her a reward for her labors,
and let her works praise her at the city gates.

This graphic really hit me hard because I would like to lose weight and look great in a swimsuit. Yes, I want to be healthy, but I will not devote my entire life to looking good, just to have people think, “wow, she’s so thin.” This obsession our entire society has with being thin has become a false idol for many people.

I want to be woman who fears the Lord. I want to be a good wife who does my husband good and not harm all the days of my life. In the long run, it doesn’t matter at all how “people” see us. It matters how God sees us.

My body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, and I will treat it as a temple. I will take care of my body by eating healthy and exercising when I can, but the focus is always on God.

What false idols do you see in our society? Exercise, finances, celebrity? Have any of these interfered with your relationship with God?