Teen Toxing - What and why?!?!

The New York times released a story earlier this month about a young starlet who admitted of using Botox to look fresh for an upcoming appearance on a big TV show. So I thought to myself: Botox? Isn't that for people trying to relax their wrinkles? Let me clarify that when I say young, I'm being very literal. She is only 18!

Teens are headed to their fave plastic surgeon and asking for Botox because of it's muscle relaxing capability. So, say they hate that they have a "gummy smile". They go and get Botox on their upper lip to relax those nerves so that when they smile, their lip lays there and voila! Gummy smile no more. And this is just one example of what they are using the medication for. Listed in the article (link below) are other treatment examples.

"According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, last year, botulinum toxin, which is sold here under the brand names Botox and Dysport, was injected into Americans ages 13 to 19 nearly 12,000 times, including some teenagers who got multiple doses. The number represented a 2 percent increase from 2008, the society said." - NY Times

Now, here is my hangup. Other than the obvious fact that teens should not be resourcing to cosmetic procedures to feel better about themselves is the obvious fact that this is a cosmetic procedure. Conducted at a medical office. Which means, if they are minors, there has to be an adult to give consent. Right? So, you are telling me that mom and/or dad are driving my little friends to the Plastics so they can feel better about themselves. Right? Am I getting this right?!?!

Parents: WHAT MESSAGE ARE WE GIVING OUR YOUTH HERE?!?!?!?!?!

I'm sorry but I am going to have to blame the parents here! Why is it that instead of having a heart to heart about what is really going on, parents are saying, ok, you don't like your face, let's get it fixed.

Moms, dads, please! If you don't know what to say, there are tons of resources out there to help you encourage your teens! Don't go the easy route just to appease them or because you are fearful yourselves that they are getting teased.

Katherine Schwarzenegger, author of "Rock What You've Got" wrote this on the subject: "My view: everyone will always be made fun of! There is nothing that you can do that will ensure that you or your child will never be teased or feel insecure again for as long as they live. If your child's smile is too gummy, their jaw too square, or they complain that they need botox to prevent them from aging, botox is not what they need and botox is not what will help them. What they need is supportive words and love to urge them to be the unique person that they are. Self-esteem is what is at the root of all of this." - Huffington Post

There you go. Self esteem! This is what needs to be addressed. This is where we need to encourage and support. Not by running to the surgeon, but by finding out what's really the issue and targeting that.

I hope and pray that the parents of teens of today become more resourceful and learn what is going on their teens lives!

Oh, and by the way, I TOTALLY have a gummy smile!!! :oD





http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/12/fashion/12SKIN.html?_r=1
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/katherine-schwarzenegger/teen-toxing_b_691678.html

The Measuring Stick

Recently I witnessed a situation that took me by surprise. My reaction, on the other hand, did not surprise me at all. It was my usual human reflex to think what I thought: "I would never do that!". This thought was immediately followed by some surprising feelings of conviction. I felt guilty for thinking that, after I analyzed the situation and realized that I needed to have much more grace than what I was feeling.

Then, I started thinking, MAN... how often do I do this??? How often do I react to people or situations with my own little measuring stick. My measuring stick is by far flawed! It's based on my personal opinions, experiences, knowledge and many times over, my emotions. All of which are extremely limited and again, FLAWED!

So it hit me; like a pile of bricks. What if Jesus judged us in the same way we judge others? Jesus was PERFECT!!! He never sinned, he never fell for temptation, he never used a curse word, he never disrespected his earthly parents, he never lied, he never cheated, he never, EVER said: "Man, I would never do that!". When the truth is, HE never did!

What he does do is love us! He accepts us, forgives us, shows us mercy and gives us all covering GRACE! WOW!

How often do we seriously need to step back from the heat of the moment and -as cheesy as we've made it and turned it into wrist bands and joke punch lines- ask ourselves: WHAT WOULD JESUS DO?!?!?!" Seriously! What would his initial thought process be?

As in all my blogs you'll find, there is hope! Ha ha ha! Don't beat yourself up! I snapped out of my guilt trip really quickly as soon as I remembered that just as he is not upset at the situation that made me say: "I would never...", he is also not upset at me for thinking what I thought! THAT right there is His all covering GRACE!

No matter what we try to do, we can never be perfect in this human life, while we are in this earth. We are to strive to live a life that honors and glorifies God. But we are going to fall. That is just our sinful human nature. The good news is, He will catch us every time. And he won't be holding an ugly measuring stick to judge us when we come to Him. He will have His arms wide open to hold us and forgive us and allow us to grow and learn and continue to get closer to him and fall more in love with Him!

There is a reason Jesus died on the cross. We ALL need a Savior! Thank you Jesus for your incredible sacrifice! Thank you for loving us and having mercy on us and for granting us your incomprehensible GRACE! We are so unworthy, yet you love us! THANK YOU FATHER!

Can I get an AMEN?!?!

Scripture references: John 3:18 & 1 Corinthians 10:23-24

PS: If you do not know your Savior and would like to have that covering from your heavenly father and that guarantee of everlasting life, please repeat this prayer and then contact me via email or reach out to someone in a local church! You WILL NOT regret this!

Heavenly Father, I come to you in prayer asking for the forgiveness of my sins. I confess with my mouth and believe with my heart that Jesus is your Son and that he died on the cross at Calvary that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the Kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus rose from the dead and I ask you right now to come to my life and be my personal Lord and Savior. I repent of my sins and will worship you all the days of my life! Because your word is truth, I confess with my mouth that I am BORN AGAIN AND CLEANSED by the blood of Jesus! In Jesus name, amen!

The Language Pact

I recently made a new friend. She is an awesome lady that loves the Lord and seeks him in a very evident way! She was sent to me in the form of a co-worker. But after a few conversations, we both knew that God was up to something more than for us to be just that.

We went for lunch recently and were having a good'ole time just laughing and having silly conversations. When suddenly we both noticed that the way we talk to each other is not exactly the way we talk to everyone. There were some choice words that we knew we could use around each other and that to us they were funny and harmless. But we also knew that they could possibly offend others.

I shared with her about an article that my sister posted on her FB that I shared in mine too because I felt it had tons of truth in it and that it was a really good article. One of the things that popped out at me in it was that by using "choice words" it showed a lack of intelligence and originality among many other negatives. We both agreed that we didn't want to be in the category of unoriginal and low IQ people so we made a pact.

We decided that we would replace the choice words by a special word that we would research weekly. (I know, just like the girls in Clueless. We laughed about that already too... lol!) And that we would use it in situations where it would be our inside joke. That was our language pact. We'd hold each other accountable in our language and learn something new on the way! Fun huh?! I think so!

So, I encourage you to do the same! Find a good friend and talk about something that you might be doing that you know might be offensive to others, or bottom line, offensive to GOD! And challenge yourselves to do something about it. Have some fun with it! I'm looking forward to the silly words we're going to learn and use in random situations and laugh about it as we go.

I am grateful that I serve a God that is so detail oriented that he even goes to the extent to bring people into our lives unexpectedly. It is usually those people that end up being super amazing blessings that encourage us, lift us up and sharpen us.

Thank you Lord for a great new friend and for fun times up ahead!

Love and blessings,

Emille

-For the article, visit my Facebook page I M PINK

Ouch!

Have you ever gone through a painful fight with a friend? Has someone hurt your feelings so badly that you just wanted to crawl in a hole and stay there for a while until the pain subsided? I think we've all been there! And OUCH doesn't begin to describe the emotional pain of being hurt on the inside.

If someone throws a ball and it hits you on the head, you put ice on it and you eventually feel better and forget all about it. But when someone hurts your feelings, sometimes time makes the pain stronger; more evident. Almost like it's being permanently scarred by the memories.

Sometimes, the situation is an easy fix. It's a simple "I'm sorry" waiting on a conversation that needs to be initiated. But other times, it was so bad that you just can't shake it! The hurt was so unexpected, so "left-field", that when it hit, it took you by surprise, shook you in ways you didn't know you could be shaken, and now, you can't seem to shake the pain away. And you can't find it in you to initiate the easy-fix conversation. Because you know in your heart of hearts that it won't be enough.

Well friend, that's when you have to give it to the Lord! Sounds cliché? Yeah, I guess it does. But it is so true! Sometimes we don't have it in us to let stuff go. You wanna feel better about it? Think about the fact that Jesus was punished, insulted, accused and slaughtered for things he NEVER did. We all know why he did it. For us! To forgive us so we could inherit His kingdom and everlasting life!

Jesus wants us to forgive. But He also has grace for us when we can't. He wants to heal us of the pain. He want to shut the wound without any scar tissue left behind. Sealed forever with his blood.

It might take time to feel that complete healing. So during that time, there is a difficult chore that we must do. Whenever we feel that pain and want to cry or shout at the injustice that we felt, we need to bless the situation or the person that might have caused it. We need to pray for them and pray blessings over them. Especially when we don't feel like it. And let me tell you, it will be HARD!!! You won't feel like it. But there is so much freedom in doing this. You will be pleasing God and through that you will allow Him to begin a work in your heart. You won't regret it! I promise!

So, be encouraged! Remember that His grace is SUFFICIENT! Don't beat yourself up if you are having a hard time letting it go. Be sure to continually give it to Him and don't carry that unforgiveness by yourself. And He will help you lay it down, heal your pain and truly forgive for good!

Love,

Emille

Woo hoo!!!!

Woo hoo!!! This is my sister's "catch phrase" that she uses whenever she is excited. Or really, just whenever. But today I am going to borrow it because I want to share with you something EXCITING!!! But wait... I can't! Not yet! I promise I will let you know all the details soon! Bwa ha ha... I know, it's kinda mean, huh?!?

For now, I will leave you with a picture so you can start guessing why I am excited. And if you know me, or you've watched my videos on my website- http://emillevictoria.com/eng/video/-, you should know that there must be more than what this pict is showing because... well, I'll let you guess and have fun!



Till then, God bless!



Love,



Emille

Rom. 12:2



PS: Did I mention I am EXCITED about this?!?!?!?