Hey guys! Today, I am going to be doing a deep dive on the “recent” trend that has had the biggest impact on me than any other trend. That’s right, I’m talking about “that girl”! For those of you who don’t know what I’m talking about, this trend encourages girls to become their “best self” through balancing physical, emotional, and mental health. A quick Pinterest search of this trend will show you young adult women drinking green smoothies and plenty of water, going to pilates classes, reading books by the pool, and having a seemingly perfect and “aesthetically pleasing” life. In addition, many habits that this trend promotes is frequent journaling, indulging in self care, and educating yourself on various self-help topics. Doesn’t this sound so nice?
I thought so, and so for a while, I began putting myself into that and trying to live up to those standards. It worked really well for a while! Last year, I would get up early to read my Bible and eat breakfast before school, work hard for all 7 hours of my classes, go to tennis practice, lift immediately afterwards, and then do all my homework and journal before going to bed at a good time. I felt great, because I was taking care of myself and thriving.
That didn’t last long, though. After a month or so, I could tell that it was all too much for me, and I wasn’t able to balance it all for a long period of time without experiencing burnout. Over time, I lost a lot of energy, and then felt guilty whenever that prevented me from being like “that girl”. It seems silly, but I kept doing it all for so long, knowing that it wasn’t reasonable or healthy, because I felt like I would be a failure if I dipped below those standards.
After all that trial and error, I learned that although this trend seems great on the surface, it isn’t realistic. In addition, I learned that if you are trying to follow Christ, then this trend isn’t what is going to help you grow into the unique person that God made you to be.
Analyzing “That Girl”
I don’t want this to lead you guys to think that this trend is all bad. Instead, I want to break down all the parts of this trend, and separate truth from what can be harmful.
Truth
The focus on balancing mental, physical, and emotional health. We need to take care of the temple that God has given us, and focus on doing things that keep us healthy in other forms. Exercise, journaling, and eating well are all ways that we can do that.
The habits that are built and encouraged. This trend has a focus on being consistent, which can be both a blessing and a curse. The good side to it is that it is encouraged to do your best every day, and to strive for a healthy everyday lifestyle through making little tweaks in your routine.
What’s Harmful
The lack of balance. This trend encourages constant hustle, and always being at the top of our game. Unfortunately, that is not how we were created. Human nature includes living in waves, and having highs and lows. Some days, we can excel with no problem, but in more difficult seasons of life, smaller tasks can become harder. It is unrealistic to expect to perform at the same level every single day.
The natural tendency to compare. When we are given this image to aspire to, it can give us a good example to follow, but it can very easily lead to comparison, which is the thief of joy. It becomes so easy to get wrapped up in trying to fit a physical expectation, or to get a life as “aesthetically pleasing” as your Pinterest feed. This often deters us from our original goal of seeking overall health, and instead gives us a heart of sadness and forces us to only focus on our flaws and shortcomings. In addition, the more we compare ourselves to other people or ideas, the more we lose our authenticity. We trade in the unique parts of ourselves to try and fit the idea that somebody else created for us.
What do I do now?
Now, you have the opportunity to create your own version of “that girl”. You can pull the healthy aspects of this trend into your everyday life, but instead of trying to recreate yourself, focus on putting these good habits into who you already are, and use it to glorify God.
If you desire to build new habits for yourself to help promote spiritual growth, the best place to look for inspiration is not Pinterest, Instagram, or any other form of social media, but the Bible. God gifted us with so many pages of wisdom, and we can learn a lot in there about how we can practically change our life, whether it is in big or small ways.
The passage that immediately came to mind for me is Proverbs 31. I was very hesitant to write on it, because I know that this is one of the most quoted passages for women, and it can feel repetitive and can get old very quickly. However, I went to read it again, and I felt like I had a fresh perspective. There are so many things in here that I feel like we could all implement in our daily lives to help us reflect the image of Christ and honor him in our life.
The part that I believe needs to be changed and refreshed is the focus on the physical: spending all your money on cute clothing, and focusing on your outward appearance. “She makes bed coverings for herself; her clothing is fine linen and purple.” (Proverbs 31:22). As you can see here, the Bible does not tell us that we all need to dress like John the Baptist and have to wear camel hair garments (ew!), especially considering the context of this verse. For God-fearing wives, keeping yourself presentable looking is considered honoring to the husband. However, we are warned against focusing on the physical. “Do not let your adorning be external - the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear - but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious.” (1 Peter 3:3-4). In addition, Proverbs 31:30 says that “charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” We should be so focused on our heart, and wanting to be more like Christ, that our physical appearance isn’t a top priority for us anymore. What do you spend more time thinking about each day: your inward or outward appearance? In the morning, before school, work, or anything else, is the majority of your routine rooted in spiritual growth or physical adorning? I know that when I get up early, it is so hard to spend time with God, but I know that I will never leave the house without taking care of my skin and making sure my hair is at least presentable. I know that I personally need to rearrange my priorities.
Christians aren’t recognized for their style, or how cute their outfits always are. Instead, we are recognized by the lost world because our heart stands out, and we are bearing the fruit of the Spirit. There isn’t anything wrong with wearing a matching outfit, but how will focusing on that grow the kingdom?
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I know that this was a little bit shorter today, but that is because I want to leave a lot of this trend’s priorities for you to decide on what we take and what we leave, especially if you are familiar with this trend. How can you incorporate a lot of these healthy habits into your life, while still staying focused on your relationship with God? Remember, he made you unique, and you shouldn’t have to fit all of what a trend says, no matter what it is. Trends come and go, but eternity is, well, eternal.
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