What’s in a Name?

Posted on by beautybeyondbones

“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet…”

I know. I know. Now a days good ol’ Bill’s iambic pentameter is about as relevant as a MySpace profile in 2016.

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OK OK, maybe an overstatement. After all, one of my favorite roles I ever portrayed was Lady Macbeth…

But I’ve gotta be honest…my boy, Leo DiCaprio in Romeo + Juliet was the best thing that ever happened to Shakespeare…

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*swoon*

But I digress.

Names.

What’s in a name?

I know I’ve recently come out with my name, but what about BeautyBeyondBones?

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I think a common misconception is that it is referring to my recovery from anorexia. From literally transforming from a skeletal frame to a healthy and vibrant young lady.

Which is true.

During the depths of my sickness, my skeletal frame was the physical manifestation of my interior brokenness. When I would look in the mirror, all I would see was the projection of my guilt, shame and inability to love myself. And I carried that into much of my early stages of recovery.

And I’m going to be honest with you. This aspect of my recovery – the mirror – has been one of the most difficult to shake. It has been an area where I can still get tripped up with – being so deeply disappointed in the reflection staring back at me – seeing only the pain I’ve caused my loved ones and deep shame I carry with me.

It wasn’t until I realized that my beauty comes from Christ living in my heart, that I truly began to heal. My physical body – my flesh, muscles, and bones – they’re beautiful, because they were “knit together in my mother’s womb” by the Lord. His handiwork.

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But it goes beyond that.

I want to just pause here for a second, because when I was in my disease, my mother used to tell me that. And even though she was 100% right on the money, I didn’t want to hear it. I didn’t want to think about being a child of God. I wanted nothing to do with it. I just wanted to be alone with ED, self-destructing. Maybe you can relate.

Here’s something that I could have related to a bit more.

There’s a story in Ezekiel 37 that literally sums up my recovery. And it sums up Beauty Beyond Bones. I seriously almost fell out of my chair when I read it. Allow me to paraphrase:

God leads Ezekiel out into the desert where he is surrounded by tons of dead, dry, bones. Ezekiel asks God, “Can these dry bones live?” And the Lord breathed into the bones and they came to life. They came together, bone to bone, flesh appeared, and skin covered them. His “breath entered them, they came to life and stood up on their feet – a vast army.”  … God said, (13-14) “I will breathe my Spirit into you and you will live.”

I was that pile of dead, dry bones – both literally and figuratively. My hope was dried up, my body was dried up. I was lifeless: a shell of a human, without passion, without purpose, without hair, and without the belief that I could go on. I was a bunch of dead bones.

But Jesus breathed life into me. Into my dead bones, and brought them to life. He restored me. Restored my body, my spirit, my mind. He took the old, dead me, and gave me new life. He made me a new creation. 

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Believing that my beauty is beyond bones has been a long and arduous journey. And if I’m really honest, I’m still on it. But every day, I’m getting closer. Every day, Jesus works a little more and more on my heart.

And I celebrate the fact that I am no longer that pile of dead, dry, bones. God has breathed life into me, and that, friends, is the beauty beyond bones.

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BBB: Because we're all recovering from something. // For speaking/business inquiries: beautybeyondbones@yahoo.com

296 thoughts on “What’s in a Name?”

  2. When God formed Adam and Eve, He breathed into them His breath! His breath which gives us the strength and courage to overcome everything the enemy can throw at us. His breath which reminds us that He loves us in spite of ourselves every single moment. His breath which can heal any affliction, restore any bad decision, and remove the burden of guilt we pile on ourselves. His breath…is in you!

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  3. Another beautiful post! Your insights are spot-on and I so appreciate your sharing your thoughts and feelings. The Ezekiel inclusion is so perfect.

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      1. Bonhoeffer described it well I’ll try. It means form of God. Jesus, had to be a man to understand man. It describes the Trinity. Just that our trials are like Him and we endure because we are human and not Gods. If we wore a King’s robe we could not see the world like Jesus did.

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      3. I’m glad you’re still here. A friend of mine was not so lucky with ED. She was, very young.

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  8. “a long and arduous journey. And if I’m really honest, I’m still on it. But every day, I’m getting closer. Every day, Jesus works a little more and more on my heart.”
    Thankfully, He will not be done with any of us until we see Him – hug Him at the end of the journey.

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  9. You’re amazing. To overcome such a difficult disease and come out shining as bright as you are is just magnificent to see! You are an inspiration and I hope you save many lives! I’m sure you have already!

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  10. Yupp! Truly beauty beyond bones!One day I realized God does breathe into us each and every moment..moment quicker than my attempt of a blink..we can’t stay ill or age when God is always breathing His spirit into us 🙂 we just need to Believe.

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  11. God makes everything beautiful in His own time. He’s refining in His timing, diamonds out of dust. If the blind man had not been blind for forty years, since birth, how else would they see the glory of God?

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  12. Life is a hoot. One day we wake up and relieze we are really broken. Along comes Jesus and puts us back together. We are whole for the first time in our life’s. Now there is nothing we will let come in the way of staying in God’s hands. Rise up dead bones and live. Wow! This spoke voulumes to my heart. I loved the way you laid it out. Blessings to you for sharing this with us.

    Peace to you

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  14. I love Ezekiel 37! God is had to breathe breath to my dry bones twice in my life: once when I recovered from alcoholism and again when I became a quadriplegic and felt hopeless. I’m so thankful for his life-giving breath.

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  15. “I want to just pause here for a second, because when I was in my disease, my mother used to tell me that. And even though she was 100% right on the money, I didn’t want to hear it. I didn’t want to think about being a child of God. I wanted nothing to do with it. I just wanted to be alone with ED, self-destructing. ”

    Wow…wow…WOW! 🙂 You’re spot-on here, girl! What a “beautiful” insight! That we would all remember this when we feel all dried up and dead inside. It always amazes me how we like to “wallow” in our “I am not’s” until the Great “I Am” can heal us of these alien identities. I know your brave testimony will shine the light on that truth and help others out of this pit. Blessings.

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    1. Hi there Mel! Thank you so much! Yeah, I was definitely in a dark place. BUT GOD. 🙂 How blessed are we to have such an amazing Healer who loves and rescues us. Thanks for stopping by and for your wonderful encouragement. big hugs xox

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  17. Magnificent! There is so much hope in this name. And since you like that Catholic TOB stuff 😉 It’s only because we can say “beauty beyond bones” that we can also say “these beautiful bones,” which just happens to be the title of a great book, “These Beautiful Bones: An Everyday Theology of the Body”. (I haven’t read much of it, but have enjoyed what I have read). Thank you!

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  18. Girl let me tell you that Ezekiel 37 is my favourite scripture In the bible! Continue sharing your story it’s truly a blessing to many! Including me! 😘

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  19. A+ post. That passage is one of my favorites; it’s read every Holy Saturday during Easter. Very apropos to your situation, and life in general.

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  20. You are so very courageous! You are sojourning to the right place. I am currently in treatment for Alcoholism; some of the same stuff tries to rear it’s ugly head. But, through The Way, and multiple approaches, I am healing the ROOT CAUSE of my addiction! Thank you for sharing

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  26. And boy when God “breathed life into those dead bones,” of yours, did He ever create someone BEAUTIFUL, INSIDE AND OUT! Love ya and God Bless, SR

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  27. Ha! I have to admit that I thought of both meanings. But I wasn’t sure if you were thinking about and implying the Christian, spiritual one. Glad to read it.

    As I get more sensitized to seeing inner beauty, it’s amazing how blown away I can get by the (outwardly) most ordinary looking people. It’s not till they smile and you see that light in their eyes… On the other hand, some outwardly ‘attractive’ people can look really ugly to me if they seem hard or arrogant.

    Have I mentioned this here? I know I did somewhere. And the person added… well, maybe the person was just having a bad day… which is also valid. 🙂

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    1. Haha that’s awesome! And I’m so with you on that. You can tell so much from a person’s eyes. You know what they say…they’re the window to the soul:) thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts! Hugs and love xox

      Liked by 1 person

  30. Wow, I’ve actually written about what’s in a name, plus my blog name comes from Ezekiel 37, a story I thought no one knew about anymore, Weird how things like this end up telling me otherwise. I think Ezekiel 37 is just what our generation needs. (I also do Shakespeare, so I agree he’s awesome.)

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    1. Thank you so much! Or really? That’s awesome! I know, I thought it was a pretty obscure verse but t turns out that a lot of people know and love it! And I can see why! Thanks for stopping by! Hugs and love xox

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  31. Hi Caralyn….I had assumed the origins of your blog title, at least the obvious part 🙂
    The dry bones story is one of my favorite from the OT, although I look at it a little differently and think about how bones themselves can’t get up and move, that muscle and tendon are needed. So bones dancing takes a deeper miracle.
    Having missed a few days, and reading your previous post as well….hmmm, wonder if you missed the obvious (to me at least, but what do I know?!) connection between the romantic desire and miracle of dancing bones.
    Anyway, as always I appreciate and enjoy your writing.
    Hugs

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    1. Hi Jeff!wow what an awesome connection. I hadn’t thought about that but you’re so right. It really is a miracle. It makes you think what those muscles and tendons are in our lives. Hugs and love xox

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  32. I’ve never thought of that passage in Ezekiel like that! What a beautiful revealed word of God to you personally and to others as well! Thank you for sharing! Just beautiful redemption! Love it!

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  36. I love this! And that passage in Ezekiel is literally one of my faves ever…have you heard Lauren Daigle’s song, “Come Alive”? So powerful and all about this passage.

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  39. The Ezekiel reference is one of my favorites. Here is another I thought you may enjoy it is from the Quran. “Behold, then, [O man,] these signs of God’s grace – how He gives life to the earth after it had been lifeless! Verily, this Selfsame [God] is indeed the One that can bring the dead back to life: for He has the power to will anything!” (Surah 30:50)

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  42. Your comments about Shakespeare aside–Dicaprio? Sir Laurence Olivier is the man!–but I digress, lol. I just love how you tie your faith into your recovery. Because they ARE one in the same. And in the mirror is God’s Child…

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  43. Hello,

    Great that you shared your mission statement, your platform. Isn’t it good to look back and remember why you do what you do? Keep on letting the Lord flesh you out from the inside out.

    In Christ,

    Gary

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  44. I’m not religious, but the quotes you took really moved me. I’d never really thought too much about the name ‘beautybeyondbones’ except for the the first more shallower point and the fact that I’d never want a blog name that referred directly to eating disorders/food/purging/symptoms/thinness/anxiety etc. But that’s a personal choice. And your choice; well, I respect why you’ve made it. Thank you for explaining, for sharing, for believing.

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    1. Thank you so much:) I’m so glad you enjoyed the quotes! Thanks, yeah I always shied away from that too, so I wanted to share the deeper meaning:) thanks so much for your encouraging words! Sending big big hugs! Happy Halloween!! Xox

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      1. 🙂
        It the end of my weekend.. 😀
        It’s Monday 1.11 am here. But thank you anyway, I have a great weekend yesterday. Once again, thanks for your post……

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      3. Yes.. amazing ! 😀 I hope I can have many friends from around the world .. 😀
        Well, thank you so much .. I hope you enjoy your weekend as always 😉

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  46. „It wasn’t until I realized that my beauty comes from Christ living in my heart, that I truly began to heal. My physical body – my flesh, muscles, and bones – they’re beautiful, because they were “knit together in my mother’s womb” by the Lord. His handiwork.“

    YES, BABY!!!! 😀

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      3. The story in Ezekiel 37 is really amazing. These words match perfectly your story. Only just before I have read your words, I read that:

        „God is revealed in the heart and it is there that man comes to know Him. The heart is where the knowledge of God is revealed to us. The heart is the innermost part of our being. It is part of our sub-consciousness. You only become aware of it gradually. The heart is the control center that reigns over the body. It is the place from which grace penetrates throughout the body and the mind. It is the deepest part of the soul and where Christ comes to dwell within us.“
        http://orthodoxwayoflife.blogspot.de/2009/07/nature-of-soul-mind-brain-and-heart.html

        He has given you a new heart; the Heart of Christ.

        Ezekiel 36:26. A New Heart and Spirit
        „…25″Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 26″Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27″I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.…“

        Now you are placed in Christ, there is no separation between you and Christ, your Body, your whole existance, is a unique part of his one Body. Write a note and stick it on the mirror and say every morning to yourself: this Body is wonderful and amazing, this is a Divine Body, because I am in Christ.
        My body is the holy temple of his everlasting Spirit.

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  47. I just want to tell you, that I really love you. And this are not only nice words. I really, really love you. I have never meet you physically, but I know you through Christ. We are both together in the BODY of CHRIST here and now and this is a intimate connection beyond time and space. Christs being is in us (Eph 3:17; Col 1:27) and our being in Christ (2Co 12:2; 1Jo 5:20) and so are we in each other. I am in you and you are in me through Christ. Every time I see you, I see Him. Every time I read your words, I can feel His presence. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
    *Hugs in Christ 😛

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