Overcoming Low Self-Esteem

Raising Confident Daughters

But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.(Luke 12:7)

There is a great responsibility for mothers raising daughters to model proper self-esteem.  This self-esteem that is powered by God's love for us.

As a teenager and up until my mid-20's, I struggled with low self-esteem. It was socially debilitating. I avoided conversations with new people, or people I thought may not like me. My internal dialogue was all about the countless reasons why I was not smart enough, pretty enough, and lastly just not good enough. It was a broken record on repeat. 

It wasn't until my late 20's that I was able to tackle my issues with self-esteem, I found Jesus Christ. I found my identity in Christ and was overwhelmed with his love for me. As they years have passed, I have gained strength and self-esteem from His love. 

This world focuses on how someone looks making it vital for my daughter (and all girls) to be rooted in the truth, God's truth. The message to just "love yourself," is everywhere. As if you just have to will enough feeling and love and you will be o.k. But the message omits God's truth, which one should deny themselves and seek Him and take up his cross daily. When consumed with seeking Jesus Christ our insecurities fade away. It becomes a process of more of Him, less of you. In this process, we don't look to our efforts to have worth but find confidence in who He is. 

A mature relationship with Christ will overflow to those around you and in the department of self-esteem to your daughter. She will see that you are not seeking approval from the world, but rather seeking Christ in your daily walk. It will come across in how you talk to others, in how you dress and how you strive to have a balanced life regarding health and fitness. 

My daughter is 8-years old, and I can recall as early as 5-years old her asking me if she was pretty. A little saying that we say to all our children is that "Your heart is more important than what you look like or what others think." We repeat this to her when she asks, "Do I look pretty?" We teach all our children that they are made in God's image and that God does not care about how they look but if their heart is seeking Him. 

Jeremiah 1:5 - Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee, and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.