Biggest Loser, or Biggest Winner???

Olivia, Hannah, Irene, and Jay.  Yes, you’re right, they are the finalists on “The Biggest Loser.”  We are fans of the show and enjoy watching the transformation of the contestants.  I’ve learned a lot from watching the show, but maybe not what you think.  I’ve learned some lessons that are vital in ministry, for kids from 1 to 101.  

Olivia, Hannah, Irene, and Jay.  Yes, you’re right, they are the finalists on “The Biggest Loser.”  We are fans of the show and enjoy watching the transformation of the contestants.  I’ve learned a lot from watching the show, but maybe not what you think.  I’ve learned some lessons that are vital in ministry, for kids from 1 to 101.  

Last weeks show highlighted the contestants return home after 20 weeks on the Biggest Loser Ranch.  They were welcomed by crowds of friends and family, cheering at the top of their lungs.  It was great! The crowds cheered as they arrived, some by limo, and one by ferry.

Each finalist shared their journey, and how their weight and appearance had affected their self worth and their health.  People had judged them on their weight and the way they looked.  They felt devalued, and depressed.  Their stories were moving, for sure.  But for me, something didn’t sit quite right.  

I realized that now, instead of being judged by their appearance and their weight, they would forever be judged by, you guessed it, their appearance and their weight.  Nothing had changed.  They had changed the way they look, but as far as I could tell, not the way they think.  They exchanged the prison of obesity for the prison of “thinness” (if that is a word.)  Either way it is still a prison.  Until we change the way we think about ourselves, we remain in chains.

Our worth is not based upon what we look like, but on the one in whose image we are made.  God loves us so much He sent His only Son to die in our place.  He loves us. He made us. He deeply loves His children.  Change your mind!  Think about yourself the way God does.  Some of us first need to change the way we think about ourselves, in order to minister to children more effectively.  

Unconditional acceptance is the key to unlock the heart of a child.  Lets teach by our actions, that God loves every child, no matter their race, language, body shape, the clothes they wear, or their affluence.  Spend as much time with the “bus kid” as you do with the star baseball player.  Talk as long to the girl living in a foster home as you do to the doctor’s daughter.  God loves them all and so should we.

If, by chance, you know Olivia, Hanna, Irene, or Jay, let them know that as amazing as their weight loss journey has been, it is nothing compared to understanding how much God loves them.  Be sure they know you love them because of who they are, not what they look like.  That’s what God does.

Have a great day serving Him!