genuine
BEAUTY
DEVO
Throughout every century, in every culture, from every society has
come some definition of beauty. For some Native American tribes,
it was how you painted your body. For others, it was an abnormally
long neck. In ancient times, it wa s long hair or a covered up figure.
And how does our culture decide to define beauty? Big boobs, a
bubble-butt, a tiny waist, sleek legs, the perfect curves, a slim figure,
and a make-up caked face.
But you know what? We are not our society! So why do we want to
accept this shallow definition of beauty? Why do we want to be a
part of a world that wants nothing to do with us by conforming to
it?
God has made everyone differently, and that difference makes us
unique, no matter what we look like. But it should not be our goal
to change ourselves into society’s view of “the perfect woman”,
which is something that we all do (at some point in our lives). Don’t
lie to yourself, you have, whether by thinking, “He may like me
more if I dye my hair,” or “If I wear make-up, I’d look prettier.” Some
of you may have taken that extra step. Maybe you have changed
your style to fit into a group; maybe you have adjusted your face so
that others, or even you, will think you’re more beautiful. But here
is the secret – a secret everyone should know. None of that matters!
Why? Because God is God, and He created us in His own image.
BY LEAH MOONEY
“Your beauty should not come
from outward adornment, such as
elaborate hairstyles and the
wearing of gold jewelry or fine
clothes. Rather, it should be that of
your inner self, the unfading beauty
of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is
of great worth in God’s sight.”
-1 Peter 3:3-4
I don’t know if you have ever thought about it this way (and to be
honest, I just thought of it), but we were created from a perfect image. Not made perfect, mind you, but fashioned by Him. God could
have formed us after anything else that he could imagine, (which is,
literally, limitless), yet He chose to carefully design us from His own
flawless Self. And how do we respect that? By changing ourselves to
conform to a temporary, imperfect world that disrespects who we
are and hates our Savior.
Now I am going to sound a bit cliché. Our personalities and spirituality is what makes us beautiful. You can have the prettiest face, but
an ugly personality will stain your beauty. “Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” I Samuel 16:7
The Lord sees who we truly are. Why don’t we work on what our
God thinks is more important than what imperfect humans may
find temporarily important?
So, if you think about it, there is really no reason for us to do what
we do. God’s love should be enough. I know that is hard. I struggle
with all of this. But it is something we all must strive for. We, as the
body of Christ, are His first love. He has an ultimate plan for us that
does not include impressing people who do not care about us or
having our hair and clothes just right. He accepts us with all of our
imperfections. All we need to do is accept that and follow Him!
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