How reducing ourselves to numbers distorts our True Reflections

​Amy Schumer is in a rant because she was included in Glamour’s plus-size special issue and Glamour didn’t even tell her that’s what she was agreeing to.
 
It doesn’t make me rant, but it makes me sad, because I can’t figure out why there is even such thing as a plus-size issue.
 
Earlier this spring Sports Illustrated patted themself on the back for featuring a “plus-size” model on one of their three swimsuit edition covers and now Glamour brags about inspiring body positivity by segregating plus-size models into a separate issue? I like SI and Glamour, but why did all of a sudden the fashion industry decide they are good citizens for including “plus size” women in their mix? Shouldn’t beauty magazines always be promoting beauty—all kinds and shapes and sizes of beauty? When a fashion mag titles something a “plus-size issue” they are labeling this as an alternative type of beauty, as if it’s not normal beauty, but beauty that goes in a separate issue, not a regular issue. Glamour doesn’t come across as applauding bigger sizes but segregating them.

​Do we classify each other’s sunset pictures on Instagram by ranking them on a scale of 1-10? No! They’re all beautiful in their own right. Can you tell me if a lily, a rose or a daffodil is more beautiful?
 
Every time I pass my Easter lily I swoon at its perfume. I stop and stare at the elegant trumpet-shaped blooms. If I look just past it out my kitchen window, I see the completely different buttercup-shaped daffodils decorating my yard. They don’t have the heavy aroma of lilies but the fresh, sweet scent of springtime. My point? They are both stunning. And if you added in delicate daisies or gorgeous roses to the mix, you’d still be hard-pressed to prove that one flower or even one type of flower is more beautiful than another. And these are just flowers. Imagine the diverse beauty of women!
 
So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Genesis 1:27 NKJV
 
And so it is with God’s image-bearers, there are women He created in all shapes and sizes. So why do we jump to measure a woman’s worth, put her into neat tidy categories based on the numbers on the scale, or the measurement of her waist, or the size on the label inside her jeans.
 
True beauty is celebrating who we are, who God made us to be, our true reflections, not saying one of us is better or worse no matter what our size is. I know Amy Schumer is concerned because she was labeled. She has a huge fan base, so she’s also concerned about what that label will do to distort others’ body image. But what if we did away with the labels all together, and celebrated our original, beautiful selves? What if the beauty industry chimed in and celebrated the beauty of all women?
 
That means we will not compare ourselves with each other as if one of us were better and another worse. We have far more interesting things to do with your lives. Each of us is an original. Gal 5:26

Dove does an amazing job highlighting a variety of women and their true beauty.

Glamour editor, Cindi Leive, writes "many Glamour readers who wear size 14 and up tell us they don't see images celebrating their shape as often as they'd like."
 
So why not incorporate size 14 and up beauties right along with waif-like models and models with medium bone structures into all of your issues all of the time? Have dark-skinned and light-skinned models, tall and short models, red heads, blondes and brunettes all touting “how to dress for the heat” and sporting the “hottest colors for spring”.  Dove rocks at this! Have you seen their ads touting, “We see beauty all around us.” Even some local mags, like Minneapolis/St. Paul’s shopping guide feature a broad array of beautiful women on the cover. These images make God smile, because He sees the true beauty in all of these women, and He wants us to do the same.
 
The beauty industry claims they are embracing a broader view. I challenge them to open their eyes a little wider—to stop pigeon holing different body types, and instead to embrace and highlight all female body types for what they are, truly, uniquely beautiful. I challenge us to let it begin with us, to embrace our own body types, and celebrate exactly how we were made by the One who Created us.

Have you seen any ads or publications that do a great job of celebrating all types of beauty? I'd love to hear about it. Share in the comments below.