Have You Tried Everything? A Biblical Way to Improve Your Body Imageনমুনা

Paint-Your-Own-Pottery Theology

Scripture’s reference to jars of clay in the book of 2 Corinthians reminds me of the many visits I’ve made to those paint-your-own-pottery places. I’m fabulously awful at it. My creations are so bad that I always “forget” to retrieve them.

I had a paint-your-own-pottery view of my body. I believed God had given me a blank vase—a jar of clay—and it was my job to make it the prettiest jar around. Sure, God molded and formed the creation, but I had to take his work and make it look good.

This responsibility for beautification felt like it was part of my divine purpose. Even the church seemed to reinforce this message. “Be a good steward of your body” certainly sounded like I should reshape, mold, paint, and prettify what God created.

“Well done, my good and faithful servant” would surely come after reaching my goal weight and toning my arms. Then, like a doting father, God would be proud of me, as if getting a better body was an amazing achievement for his kingdom.

But, my perspective was skewed. Now I see that healing our body image issues is more about correcting our theology than correcting our biology. Scripture mentions little about what we do with the outside of our vessels. Second Corinthians 4:7 reads like this, “But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us” (ESV, emphasis mine).

The jars-of-clay part is significant. We’re all a little unique, just as no two pieces of pottery are exactly alike. But this treasure inside that Paul refers to is the light of the gospel. It’s the illumination of “the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus” (2 Corinthians 4:6esv). We are containers for his light and his grace. Our beauty comes from his radiance. If we want to emit beauty, we don’t have to change our bodies, we just have to let that radiance out!

If you feel like a first draft, a less than, or a have-not in a world full of beautiful bodies, can I encourage you? There’s nothing wrong with your vessel.

As the Westminster Catechism reminds us, the chief end of man is to know God and make him known. Your body is fully equipped for this mission, no matter your age or build, skin condition, or size.