Your body really IS a temple.

I have come to realize that when you mix a mirror and your mind with Satan you get a really sick combination. There's nothing wrong with mirrors. They were a fantastic invention. And the human mind? AMAZING. But I guess when you put Satan and his "angels" into anything you get a sad turnout.
When I look in a mirror, I have a hard time being okay with what I see. Or at least, I did, starting in elementary school, all the way through middle and high school.  Even now. But that is changing.
Lately, I've been thinking about how my body is a temple. If you grew up in the LDS church, then you've probably heard that hundreds of times. Talking about tattoos? Your body is a temple, don't defile your temple. Word of Wisdom? Your body is a temple, don't drink alcohol or do drugs. Simple. There is more to this than I ever thought about though.
My body is a temple. It was created with great care by the greatest being in the universe, Heavenly Father. It was created so that my spirit could come to earth and have a place to dwell while here. The only way for my Spirit to get back to Heavenly Father is to come to Earth and join with a physical body. My body is also a place for the Holy Ghost to dwell. He guides me and comforts me. I can't make it through the time on Earth without the Holy Ghost.
Now, what does that have to do with mirrors and Satan?
Satan knows that my body is a temple for my spirit and the Holy Ghost. He knows that I can't get back to Heavenly Father with a broken spirit and a dirty temple.
With that knowledge he attacks me! Not physically. He can't touch me. BUT, he CAN and he WILL whisper to me. He will try to convince me that I am ugly, weird, awkward. He will trick other people into believing that they know what beauty is, so that they can tell me if I'm not.
For example: I'm white. I. can. not. tan. In America, being tan is "beautiful", and it really is, but so is being fair skinned. I didn't know that though. I just thought, "if only I was able to tan. I would be more beautiful." I, not only, have my own thoughts telling me that I should be more tan, I have friends that tell me that too. I've had friends look at my arms after a long winter and say "Wow, have you been outside at all?" or "Kinsey, you just need to go outside and tan." (I tried, it resulted in a horrible sunburn, ouch!) Look people, I don't tan. It doesn't happen that way. I'm learning though, that Heavenly Father made me this way. He gave me fair skin. He carefully picked out the color of my skin, the color of my hair, the color of my eyes. He decided I should be "this tall" and "this wide". "Her feet will be this size."
"She will be allergic to cats, and dislike these foods."
"Eventually, she will learn to like certain foods, but others she will decide she still doesn't like."
"She will be quiet, she will be stubborn, she will be a little quirky, but I want her to be that way." "She'll be her mom's best friend, kind to those around her, and love those with disabilities."
"She will cry a lot, but she'll get used to it and learn to carry tissues everywhere."
I have been thinking about this a lot. God made me the way I am for a reason. Instead of trying to be like others around me, why am I not embracing WHO I AM and loving myself?
If my body is a temple, then I need to treat it like one. I need to be kind to it. I need to take care of it. I need to love it, and it's creator.
I need to shove Satan out. (Get thee hence, Satan!)
I need to ignore others judgments.
I'm white. That's not bad.
I'm short. Embrace it, Kinsey!
I blush a lot. God made me that way.
The list goes on and on. I had a list of things I wish I could change about myself, it gets shorter the more and more I think about this.
I'm learning that I want my temple to be clean and healthy. I exercise for myself. I eat healthy for myself. I love myself and praise God.
It's my temple, and I will take care of it and love it, because it was a gift from my Heavenly Father.
It's as simple as that. 

Love

"How often have you and I made judgements that are equally unfair? Why can't we resist the urge to second-guess and evaluate each other? Why do we judge everything from the way we keep house to how many children we do or do not have? Sometimes I wonder if the final judgement will be a breeze compared with what we've put each other through here on earth!

 The Spirit cannot dwell in a home, a ward, or a relationship where there is criticism. Contention neutralizes us spiritually. When we fail to champion one another, we in essence betray each other. 

It is simply not for us to judge each other. The Lord has reserved that right for himself, because only he knows our hearts and understands the varying circumstances of our lives. Principles and covenants are the same for all of us. But the application of those principles will differ from woman to woman. What we can do is encourage each other to constantly seek the direction of the Holy Ghost to help us make decisions and then to bless us with the reassurance that our lives are on course. Only when the Lord is directing our lives may we expect to feel peace about our choices. And his approval is so much more vital than that of the ward busybody. 

 Another kind of judging is more subtle but equally destructive. How often do we describe a sister with words like these: She's a convert. She's been inactive. She's a Utah Mormon. She's single. She's a stay-at-home mom. 

When we label one another, we make judgments that divide us from each other and inevitably alienate us from the Lord. The Nephites learned this lesson the hard way. After the Saviour appeared on this continent, those converted to the gospel lived in harmony for two hundred years. Because they loved God, they also loved each other. And though previously there had been Nephites and Lamanites and Ishmaelites, there were now no"-ites," as the scriptures tell us (4 Nephi 1:16) It wasn't until they again divided into classes that Satan began to win many hearts. The Nephites never recovered spiritually.

 Can't we get rid of the "-ites" among us? Can't we avoid this "hardening of the categories"? We gain nothing by segregating ourselves based on superficial differences. What we have in common -- particularly our commitment to the same glorious cause--is so much more significant than any distinctions in our individual lives. I think again of our sisters in Africa. The fact that my life is completely different from theirs didn't matter. When we left that last meeting in Ghana, I wept because I felt such a bond with them. We are our sister's keeper. Heaven forbid that we would ever make even one sister feel left out. If there is any place in all the world where a woman should feel that she belongs, it is in this Church."

 - Sheri L. Dew

Lately, I've been really into reading books that will bring me closer to Christ. The book that I am reading right now is called Arise and Shine Forth. It's a compilation of all of the talks from The 2000 Woman's Conference at BYU. One talk in it by Sheri L. Dew is titled "As Women of God, Shall We Not Go Forward In So Great A Cause?" It's such a great talk and there are so many quotes from it that I want to share with people. But this one (I would apologize for the length of it, but it's all so good, that I couldn't leave anything out. She just worded this so well), is SUCH a great reminder that we need to quit judging, quit gossiping, quit causing contention, quit hurting feelings. We need to LOVE each other. We need to lift each other up. We need to live up to the name of our church. We are members of The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter Day Saints. If we belong to Christ's church, then why don't we act like it? Christ loved everyone. He served others. We don't uphold His name when we aren't trying our best to love and live like Him.  

If you'd like to read the entire talk, this link will take you to it.