I AM Changes i am: Beautiful!

This blog entry this morning may need to read: For Women Only (although, if you are a guy reading this blog, remember to treat the woman God gives/gave you the way he sees her!).  Please think about the following verse:

Listen, Oh daughter, consider and give ear…The King is enthralled by your beauty.

Psalm 45:11

According to one author, the cry of every woman’s heart is the answer to the question, “Do you think I’m beautiful?”  I found this difficult to believe, until I realized just how often I ask my husband, “Do you think I look OK?”  However, I don’t want to know that he simply thinks I look “OK,” I long to hear the words, “You look beautiful.”  I also began to notice how many times I look in a mirror during the day, to smooth my hair, or reapply lipstick, or check out how I look in a window as I walk by.  It simply wouldn’t do to not be at my best.  But, one thing is for certain.  We do not ever have to wonder what the King of the Universe thinks about us.  This verse says it all – He thinks you are gorgeous, and he wants you to pay particular attention to this fact.  So, go ahead, say it:

I am beautiful!

The problem is that in our society, the world has unveiled a certain box that women must fit in to be called “beautiful.”  We must dress a certain way, be a certain size, wear our hair just right, and have a complexion that is flawless.  If we don’t fit the box, we don’t think we measure up.  If we don’t measure up, then we can’t be beautiful.  And, if we’re not beautiful, then, obviously, we are less than significant.  This is such a lie!  After all, if you lived in Africa, the bigger your butt (sorry if the “b” word offends you), the more beautiful you are.  It’s all so relative, depending on the culture you come from.  But, no matter where we live, it’s the “world” that sets the standard.  This should not be!

The Lord God should set the standard.  He created each of us unique.  He knew what our bone structure would be before he planted us in our mother’s womb. He knew the color of hair we’d have, and he had every one of them counted!  He intended for there to be variety and creativity, so we wouldn’t live in a mundane, cookie-cutter world.  His idea was that we’d learn to find the beauty in “different.”  But somewhere along the way, man got this hair-brained idea that his version of beauty was better than someone else’s.  As a result, we are ruled by “opinion.”  Sadly, the opinion of man became more important than the opinion of God.

Now, certainly, there are things we can do to enhance our beauty and femininity.  As someone once said, “Some barns are just better painted.” J Taking a little more time with how we look can certainly change the way we think of ourselves, and increase our confidence level.  However, we don’t have to succumb to the world’s standard.  So instead of dressing for fashion, we dress to fit our body type; don’t over-do on the makeup; exercise and eat right to be healthy; and stay clean and neat.  The little things can make a world of difference, especially where attitude is concerned.

At the same time, every mirror should come with a warning sign!  Warning:  Reflections in this mirror could be distorted by socially constructed ideas of beauty.  Instead, look in the mirror of the Word - Ah, yes, you are beautiful!  And, so am I!