Thriving...in Spite of It

It’s Monday again, and —-wait, how did you just react to that? Did your shoulders square up or droop? Did you take a deep, invigorating breath, or expel a sigh? Whatever you’re facing this week, whether it’s the fire-breathing dragon in the corner office, the mean girl in the next cubicle or the inadequacies you see when you look in the mirror, the fact that you’re facing the same ongoing battles over and over doesn’t make them any easier, or the outcome any more certain.  Some days you still feel like the tiny 6th-grader, overloaded with heavy books, forgetting your locker combination, getting bullied out of your lunch money, and overwhelmed by the crowd of boisterous over-achievers. There you are, just trying to get by without being run over, caught up and pulled down in the undertow. Much like the chaos and turbulence of a hallway crowded with middle-schoolers hyped up on sodas and hormones, some of the biggest rivers we have to cross are overwhelming, mind-boggling and equal...

...Who is the fairest of them all? Admit it: when you looked in the mirror this morning, your first observation was critical. Psychologists tell us, as women, our strongest basic need is affirmation. We know, ourselves, our greatest battle has everything to do with our need to belong -- to feel worthy. In all of this, we see that our worst enemy is right there--in the mirror. The truth is, you have an intrinsic value that cannot be diminished. A young lady I knew and loved like a daughter (she went to be with the Lord unexpectedly at the age of 18) struggled with her self-worth for years. Abandoned by her father, then later abused, Rachel felt worthless, until she found her identity in Christ. His love healed the years of hurt and self-loathing. She thrived and grew into a tremendous young leader in the @LadiesofHonor, and one of her favorite lessons to the younger girls involved a brilliant illustration. She would take a $20 bill, and ask the class, "What is this? How much is it...