Personal Acceptance

Today, in celebration of "Bloggers Without Makeup Day" (May 14th) I want to talk about acceptance. (At the end you get a prize!) No, I don't mean being accepted by the people at school or at work. To be honest, you can't force anyone into giving approval on what you look like or who you are. You can't just change your image and then be immediately accepted like that. It's not your car, it's not your clothes, it's not even your appearance. When someone really accepts you, it's because of the confidence they see shining through.

However, it's hard to be self-assured when the world tries to force you into believing that you're too thin, too fat, too tall, too short, too whatever. Nobody really has a perfect body or face, even those computer-enhanced supermodels. They are insecure just like you and me. People will insult you when they find something different in you than what you are "supposed to be" according to our society. Their rudeness scars. Insecurities begin surfacing. Your self esteem dwindles continually.

I have been blessed enough to attend a private school my whole life so far. As a result, I've never really been insulted in the face. I thank God for that, because as a really sensitive, emotional person, those insults would really hurt me. Still even the unspoken bruises me sometimes. (I'm going to be really honest right here...) When I look at the mirror, I see so many flaws: freaky mustache, wide face, huge fivehead, forehead acne, flatness in the chestal area, and humongous bottom (for my proportions) just to name a few. But that doesn't mean that I have be insecure about those things that the world considers imperfections.

We all have specific things we don't like about ourselves. Maybe it's your laugh or your the tan from your sunglasses. Maybe it's your weight or white thighs. Maybe others tease you about them. Maybe they put you down because it's them having trouble accepting who they are. We all are insecure in one way or another. However, insulting others is not the way to make yourself feel better. In the long run, it only hurts you more, because one day, someone will knock you down a few pegs and you'll be lost. Watch what you say; it really does have an effect on others.

Don't give up the hope. Our presently dreadful situations allow us to relate to others and reach out to those who are struggling as we did before. The Lord uses our trials as ways to honor Him--if you let Him. Surround yourself with positive people who lift you up when you fall and let you cry on your shoulder. They are the people who made me accept that I will never be tall; in fact, they made me believe that I wouldn't be Kayla without being short! It's those people who really matter, not those who constantly attempt to bring you down.

So I challenge you, be confident in who God made you to be. Pray that you accept who you are and who you are made to be. After all, at the end of our lives, it'll be God judging us (and not on looks either).  Find something you love about yourself and focus on that. Know that you are made in the image of God. Know that what really deserves praise is not what you look to the world, but how you look at the world.

This is a pre-prize! This song has such a great message, and seeing the transformations from what's real to what's wanted is amazing as well.

So here's your prize for reading all of that: the first pictures of me on this blog. Beware, I'm wearing no makeup, only moisturizer...

I think flash makes my blemishes more pronounced...

So I made sure these photos were taken with flash.

I don't have perfect skin. I may look like a boy sometimes because of my curves (or lack thereof). I may look like a fifth grader because of my height. But hey--that's the real me.

What insecurities have you--or have yet to--overcome with God's help?

To My Mom

This poem is dedicated to my lovely mother:

For as long as I can remember...

You were always by my side,

To give me support, confidence, and help.

For as long as I can remember...

You were always the person I looked up to,

So strong, so sensitive, so pretty.

For as long as I can remember...

You always provided stability within our family,

Full of laughter, full of tears, full of love.

For as long as I can remember...

And still today,

You are everything a mother should be.

Whatever I have become is because of you...

...and I thank you for everything you are to me.

You are so...

Beautiful...

Smart...

Joyful...

Welcoming...

CUTE... :)

Friendly... (Thanks for giving me your gorgeous smile!)

Loving...

You have taught me so many things: how to be strong, how to love, how be truly beautiful. But most of all, I just want to say that I love you and thank God for giving me the best mom I could have ever asked for. Happy Mother's Day!

What do you love most about your mom?

What's So "Good" About This Friday

As most (if not all) of you know, today is Good Friday. I don't know about the other kids that go to my school, but to me, it's much more than a day off. It's a symbolic celebration of the day that Christ die for ME. It's crazy to think that all the of my sins were what held him to that cross. The lies that have escaped my mouth so that I might look better... The anger that explodes at others... The laziness that prevents me from being who God wants me to be... These were just a few things that drove the nails into his wrists and ankles.

A couple years ago, my Bible teacher introduced me to this song by Sixpence None the Richer and Bebo Norman. I think it does a good job of summarizing everything that went down the day that Christ died for the world.


(Note: The video that I would have liked to put here can be found at this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qahF83maIo. It is more graphic and sometimes hard to watch--not Passion level, but still hard to watch--yet it definitely shows more of the horrible suffering Jesus underwent for so that we could be redeemed.)

As a very touching feeling type of person, I find it amazing how Jesus saw me, all messed up, and how desperate I was for saving grace, then died so that He could offer it to me. He did it for me, and He did it for YOU.

He lived to die.

He died so that we might live.

We live because he died. 

Don't you think that that deserves something more than just going to church every Sunday? So I challenge you to remember what Romans 3:24 says: "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." It isn't our good works that save us. It isn't even our good looks. They have no power whatsoever of saving us from ourselves. What does have that power, however, is something very scandalous but still very beautiful... Jesus's blood.

 What do you think it means to "live for God"?

Monday Morning Mood Boost: Jesus's Side of the Story

(Quick note: I don't know if I have to put the apostrophe and s after the name of Jesus. I will ask my amazing English teacher tomorrow.)

Today, I would like to introduce A Growing Perspective's first blog segment (or series): Monday Morning Mood Boost!

Here's the logo!

Every so often, I will post a funny picture or comic--or whatever makes me laugh and hopefully makes your day a little bit brighter--on Monday morning. I find that on Monday, I just don't feel like getting up from my warm possessive bed (yes, it does love me). I'm cranky, my hair looks disgusting, we just ran out of milk, etc. I'm sure you all can relate with this.  It just isn't a good start of the week. This is why I created MMMB. I want to encourage you all to be happy and just have a positive outlook on life. Hopefully these pictures will help me do that for you all. So, considering this week is Holy Week, here is the first ever Monday Morning Mood Boost.

 

P.S. The next post will actually be deep! :)

When you're having a bad day, what lifts you up?

Back -- And Better Than Ever!

Or at least that's what I'm aiming towards. I did have a blog a couple of years ago, but after a year or two, I eventually stopped posting for some reason. Now, I have come back to the blogging community with a few goals in mind.

1. Write about subjects of substance and relevance to both my readers and me. To be honest, my last blog was a train wreck. At least 99.9% of my posts were just words without meaning. Thinking back, it was full of a lot of bragging: my graduation, my science fair awards, my track meet results. Right now I don't know why people even read it. :D This time around, I aim to be not selfish and boasting, but rather selfless and humble.
2. Record "big days" and other memories. This goal is rather silly (and just might be opposing the first one). Recently, I was on the College Board website, filling out this page that would help for future resumes and applications. One of the areas to fill out was awards that I had received in the past. I remembered most of them, but the website also asked for the dates when I was awarded them... Like I had any clue. I just remembered it was in [fill in the blank] grade, and I was pretty happy and content with life. So I pulled up my old blog in my web browser, and lo and behold, I had written about my "accomplishments" and when I was awarded them. Bingo! So it was a good thing I didn't totally obliterate it.
3. Create an outlet. For many people it's sports. Others prefer art. Some just hold it in. For a while, I have been the last person. Going back in time, I realize that all that pent up emotion did cause several catharses. I've come to see it's not a healthy way to live. I didn't really see sports as an outlet; it was more a social thing for me (sorry to all those who hold sports higher in their lives than I do). I found I'm not all that great at any type of art expect for tracing. :P So I tried diaries... They never really stuck with me. I think others will say they did this same drill I did: buy a really cute diary, write in it religiously for a couple days, then forget about it. It's really sad cause my last one was extremely adorable. See for yourself:

   

   Yes, I even bought the bag AND the stickers!

   I just think blogging is better for me, because there is this accountability you have to account for (haha, repetition) when there are others reading it. But don't worry, we won't have any "OMG, he actually said something to me today!" type of writing. ;)
4. Improve writing skills. Sad, I know. Actually using the internet as a way to help my educational career?! The thing is, I'm a pretty slow writer. It takes a while for me to think about subjects enough that I feel comfortable writing about it. (Just ask my English teacher. He knows how slow I am at writing those practice SAT essays.) I think blogging will aid my overall writing skills by improving (or at least using) a larger vocabulary and learning to think quickly and write fast but thoroughly.
5. Learn opinions from teenagers like me. Since I go to a tiny, tiny Christian school (I'm talking approximately 13 people from freshmen to seniors) and live on an island in the middle of nowhere, I don't get many opinions about how Christians should live in this corrupted culture. I think writing a blog like this would encourage others to voice their own beliefs as well. 
6. Challenge and inspire others in their Christian lives. Probably the most important goal... But first, confession time. I find that going to a private Christian school, attending youth group weekly, going through two Bible studies, and listening to a sermon every Sunday doesn't always provoke me enough. Am I the only one who feels this way? I don't know. It almost feels like Christian authorities are too afraid to speak about things that are directly related to how we live because of how involved many of us are in today's worldly culture and how it might scare us away. Or maybe they're afraid of how it'll affect the way that they personally live. It might just be that it's harder for them to communicate and talk about. I'm not really sure. Nevertheless, I would like to have a place that does present that challenge. Just Christian music or not? Only religious books or not? Those are the things that interest me. And who knows? *shrugs* Maybe on the path of finding what God wants for me, I can inspire others to do the same.

Phew! That took a long time to write. Don't worry, my other blog posts will definitely not be this long. Seeing that I'm on spring break, I actually have time to keep blabbing on like this. Speaking about blab, guess what? Reading it over, there are still a whole bunch of "I"s in it... Haha, I should write that down as a goal: Stop blabbing about myself. :P After all, it's not about me; it's about Him. Hope you all have a great day!

Do you ever find yourself annoyed by people who only talk about themselves only to realize that you do the same thing?