Beauty in the Eyes of the Beholder

Psalm 139:14  I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

When you look at yourself in the mirror today, remember, 

that what you feel is not what God sees.

Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things; and desperately sick; who can understand it?

Proverbs 31:30 Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

I used to love a Goo-Goo Dolls song called "Slide," it had a verse that said, "What you feel is what you are and what you are is beautiful."  To me that song meant that you are beautiful, so feel it, live like it.

I pass a mirror a dozen times a day and each time I pass I also pass judgment--always thinking how I could "perfect"something or thinking of someone in particular and wondering why I can't be more like them (if I'm being honest with myself, why I can't be better than them?). I am so scared of others noticing my imperfections that I shy away from boldness and live meekly in fear of criticism.  I was being particularly hard on myself today and I just felt like God said to me, "When you look at yourself in the mirror today, remember, that what you feel isn't what I see."

The heart can not be trusted.  There are a lot of verses in Proverbs that attest to this and it is true.  Our emotions are sin driven, our feelings are sin driven.  We manipulate truth and believe lies and live lives that are in shame or in hiding.

I desire perfection and often measure perfection by flawed standards. God fearfully made me--FEARFULLY- respectfully--He took His time, paid attention to detail and created me in His image.  His works are wonderful and scripture says that we are His workmanship.

Ephesians 2:10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

What you feel on a daily basis is not truth, what you think is lies, who you are can none be understand through the heart because our hearts are deceitful.  You are beautiful, you are fearfully and wonderfully made, this is the promise and truth that you store in your heart, this is what you draw your feelings from.  With this truth we then live a life of Beauty--a life Fearing the Lord.

Some days we have to "fake" confidence.  We have to quiet the lies, remember the truth and live for truth even if we feel bound by lies.  It's a habit, a pattern, a exercise--rising above and living in truth.  One day, it will become so natural that what started out as "fake" becomes engraved in us. The lies quiet and our beauty is loud because we are living lives for God and see ourselves through His eyes and His heart. He is our mirror and what we see when we look into it should be far more beautiful than charm or vanity.

Live Boldly, Live Fearless, Live a Beautiful Life in Christ.

Value

Lately the word value has come to mind.  On a daily basis, sometimes hourly, sometimes minute-by-minute, I am constantly comparing myself to individuals or things.   I am in a constant state of comparison, each thought holding a value by which I judge my worth and my purpose.

As a Christian I have to ask myself, If we are all created in the image of God than why can't I keep my mind rating value based on the qualities I have and how they compare to God?
He created us to be strong, independent, individuals who are uniquely made and yet we are so desperate to compare, to fit-in, and to be conformed to the status-quo or the newest trends.
When did I become this person who needs other individuals to affirm who she is?
When did I stop believing that I am fearfully and wonderfully made?
When did the concept of value become so distorted in my mind that I have enslaved myself to what is around me instead of what is within me?

Tonight I prayed to God to reveal to me how and why I became so enslaved to this desire and need to compare and I feel like He brought to my attention the true definition of value...

1 Timothy 6:11-12
But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue Righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith.  Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

Righteousness-- Acting in accord with divine or moral law; free from guilt or sin.
Godliness-- Divine, pious, devout
Faith--allegiance to one's praises; sincerity of intentions; complete trust
Love--attachment, devotion, enthusiasm, admiration
Steadfastness--firmly fixed in one place, not subject to change, determined
Gentleness--mildness of manners or disposition, free from harshness

These are the things of Value, these are the qualities by which to compare, these are the attributes to strive after.  

I may have to read this list a hundred times until it becomes engraved in my mind, but my goal is that when the craving for comparison stirs within; these are the things that  come to mind.

The Things of Value are what keep our eyes to the skies.

20 Minute, 20 Day Challenge

As I read through people's daily Facebook posts, Pinterest boards, magazine articles and television ads, I am realizing a common trend--the 30 minute, 30 Day Challenge for better arms, tighter abs, and a better body.  It seems no matter what you want to fix there is a plan out there that can do it in a month, for just a few minutes of your day.  People are getting enthralled by these plans, especially those who have already seen their New Year's Resolutions bite the dust, who have seen the bathing suits brought out at Target (shudders) and who are desperate for change in their lives.  Don't get me wrong, I find myself pondering these same plans, and who doesn't want stronger arms or flatter abs? But I ask myself, "Where is my focus truly going?"

I felt convicted this morning that our focus is completely altered when it comes to finding our confidence, improving our character, and feeling better about ourselves.  I asked God today what I was doing wrong, why my confidence seems to be the bulls eye of the enemies arrows, and why no matter how hard I try, I can't seem to shake the constant state of dissatisfaction.  I think as women this is something that the enemy especially uses against us, and that somewhere along the road we have come to value ourselves based only on our outward appearance and our ability to compare to those around us.  I felt that God answered my question this morning by simply stating "Draw closer to me, and I will draw closer to you."

I know that if I spent 20 minutes with God for 20 days, my focus would start shifting, my confidence start soaring, and my personality would bloom into the woman that God created me to be.  Our confidence can only be found in God, our power is only as strong as the power we give Him in our lives, and our personalities can only bloom when we are fed by God's word.  I'm trying to find every quick fix in the book, every miracle plan that can give me quick results, and yet I fail to do the one thing that I know will make me stronger than any Sit-up, push-up, marathon PR, or diet plan.

My goal for the next 20 days is to spend at least 20 minutes a day with God.  I want my confidence to be founded in Him, I want my beauty to be defined by His standards, and I want my strength to be unswerving as my testimony proves to others the importance He has in my life.

My hope is that others will see that they are wonderfully and beautifully made by God for a purpose and a plan that goes beyond skin-deep.  Don't get me wrong, I have plans to be healthier, to start a work-out regimen; but I know that until I first make God my priority and draw closer to Him, the enemies arrows will continue to destroy all the work I attempt to do on my own.

Here's to becoming stronger women of God, with a confidence that can not be shaken, and by an exterior that is toned to resist the arrows of the enemy.  Day 1 starts Today!