| April Devotion |
April Devotion
What is this thing called beauty? It seems like the media screams at us what we should look like,
and what's crazy is that we believe it. Why do we do that? Why do we buy into this notion that
women must look a certain way and be a particular size to be beautiful? Why is it that women
who are absolutely beautiful don't believe that they are beautiful at all? Well, I think I know. It's
because we fall into the Body Image trap. Women see the images that society bombards us with,
and then we take those images to heart and we think, "Well, if I don't look like that then I must
not be beautiful". Wrong! We can't base our beauty on what the media or the fashion industry
thinks. Besides you don't really believe that the women we see in magazines really look like that
do you? It is a fantasy, achieved with makeup, lighting, and an airbrush. You know what?
Fantasy is fickle. Consider the changing faces of beauty over the last few decades. First Marilyn
Monroe, then Twiggy, Kate Moss, and finally Pamela Anderson. The face of beauty changes
depending on the time in which we live. At best, that is shaky ground to measure ourselves
against.
Yes, it is true that society as a whole judges by the outward appearance. God acknowledges that
when He said in 1 Samuel 16:7 "...Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have
rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward
appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." Isn't it interesting that God specifically told Samuel
not to consider his appearance? I love that! Clearly, God instructs us to not judge by what we see
on the outside because it is the heart that is most important. If we are ever going to climb out of
the body image trap, we have to begin by acknowledging that we all focus too much on the
exterior and not enough on the interior. Our heart and it's condition are what matter to God. If
we want to have unfading beauty, we must begin by not considering our appearance. Let's start
with the inside and work our way out.
For Reflection:
I want to challenge you this month to look deep into your heart. Do you think that outer beauty is
more important than inner beauty? If so why? My prayer is that as we begin this journey
together, we will discover that beauty is about more than what we see, it is about what we radiate
to others as Christ's love flows through us.
My prayer for you all...
Father,
As we begin this amazing journey, I want to pray for the women who are reading this. I know
what it is to focus so much on the outside, that we don't see the true beauty that you have placed
inside us all. Remove the veil from our eyes. Help us to identify the reasons we focus so much on
the outside. Help us to place more value on our inner beauty than we do our outer beauty. Take
us by the hand and lead us on this journey.
In Jesus name,
Amen
What is this thing called beauty? It seems like the media screams at us what we should look like,
and what's crazy is that we believe it. Why do we do that? Why do we buy into this notion that
women must look a certain way and be a particular size to be beautiful? Why is it that women
who are absolutely beautiful don't believe that they are beautiful at all? Well, I think I know. It's
because we fall into the Body Image trap. Women see the images that society bombards us with,
and then we take those images to heart and we think, "Well, if I don't look like that then I must
not be beautiful". Wrong! We can't base our beauty on what the media or the fashion industry
thinks. Besides you don't really believe that the women we see in magazines really look like that
do you? It is a fantasy, achieved with makeup, lighting, and an airbrush. You know what?
Fantasy is fickle. Consider the changing faces of beauty over the last few decades. First Marilyn
Monroe, then Twiggy, Kate Moss, and finally Pamela Anderson. The face of beauty changes
depending on the time in which we live. At best, that is shaky ground to measure ourselves
against.
Yes, it is true that society as a whole judges by the outward appearance. God acknowledges that
when He said in 1 Samuel 16:7 "...Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have
rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward
appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." Isn't it interesting that God specifically told Samuel
not to consider his appearance? I love that! Clearly, God instructs us to not judge by what we see
on the outside because it is the heart that is most important. If we are ever going to climb out of
the body image trap, we have to begin by acknowledging that we all focus too much on the
exterior and not enough on the interior. Our heart and it's condition are what matter to God. If
we want to have unfading beauty, we must begin by not considering our appearance. Let's start
with the inside and work our way out.
For Reflection:
I want to challenge you this month to look deep into your heart. Do you think that outer beauty is
more important than inner beauty? If so why? My prayer is that as we begin this journey
together, we will discover that beauty is about more than what we see, it is about what we radiate
to others as Christ's love flows through us.
My prayer for you all...
Father,
As we begin this amazing journey, I want to pray for the women who are reading this. I know
what it is to focus so much on the outside, that we don't see the true beauty that you have placed
inside us all. Remove the veil from our eyes. Help us to identify the reasons we focus so much on
the outside. Help us to place more value on our inner beauty than we do our outer beauty. Take
us by the hand and lead us on this journey.
In Jesus name,
Amen
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