Katie & Camera

#The Body Project

· 7/1/12 · 33 · Reblog

Sydney Maccubbin
[Part 1/10 of The Body Project]

“We are all faced with a series of great opportunities
brilliantly disguised as impossible situations.”
—Chuck Swindoll

There is no denying that life is tough. We often find ourselves facing giants — every day and everywhere — as if we have been cursed. Yet, I have come to find that nothing is impossible with God. With Him by my side, there is nothing I can’t do.

But… there was a time in my life where I didn’t quite believe that.

For a long time, I believed that I had to go through life alone. That’s when things fell apart for me, and my thoughts brought me down. I had this little, evil voice in the back of my head that would tell me that I wasn’t good enough, and that other people were better than me. I believed it, and for a while, that voice was pretty corrosive upon my life. No one knew, though. I am a genuinely happy person, people knew that, so I hid behind my smile; but I quickly got tired of forcing it. Do you know what helped me turn things around?

Confidence.

I finally embraced my true self with open arms. Once I stopped caring about what the world thinks of me and start caring only about what God thinks, an inner peace consumed me. A peace that now whispers, “Everything is going to be alright.”

“I know God will not give me anything I cannot handle,
I just wish he didn’t trust me so much.”
—Mother Teresa

God will never give you a trial that you cannot conquer. Of course, you won’t be able to do it alone, and thankfully, you don’t have to, and that’s the point. 1 Peter 4:12 says, “Friends, when life gets really difficult, don’t jump to the conclusion that God isn’t on the job,” because, guess what? He is. When you are confronted by people who, from your perspective, seem to exist solely to drive you crazy, remember that person is created in God’s image just as you are. Also, remember that regardless of your habit of wrongdoing, you are of great value to God.

“It seems that God wants to use us, wants to grow us up, wants us to be strong and wise and courageous. He doesn’t seem terribly interested in making sure we are comfortable. He would not make a good flight attendant.”
—John Orteberg

God has chosen us. He has chosen us to spread His Word, to involve us in His Holy Mission. If you don’t see yourself the way God sees you, how are you going to inspire people to follow Him? How are you going to help Christ change the world? We are all created in the image of the Beautiful Creator. Don’t you think that by believing that you are not beautiful enough, God, whose image you are created in, would be a little offended?

It breaks my heart every time I look back upon that dark time of my life. I didn’t accept myself, but expected others to accept me. Then, I realized that I only get one life, and I don’t want to look back when I’ve run out of time and say, “Sydney, you could have done so much better. You could have made a difference, but you were so self absorbed.”

That little voice in the back of my head is gone now. Now, I go through everyday knowing God is going to use me. I am so very blessed. I now know that my body is just a shell; it will one day die out; so I stopped worrying about the temporary, and I started to look forward to my Everlasting. I am a loved child of God, and so are you. God has put me in my situation for a specific reason. And guess what? I’m so excited! Trust God with all of the details of your life. It’s not gonna be easy, but it will be worth it.

Love,
Sydney Clare Maccubbin

- - - - -

These photos help to display the struggles that Sydney faced with body image, what she looks like without and with make-up, and the cleansing of her insecurities.

For more information on Sydney’s story, or The Body Project, please contact me at KathleenSayer@gmail.com

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