Being A Truly Beautiful Woman of God
Being Truly Beautiful in a Twisted World - By H. Suzuki
One of the many evils this modern world has ingrained into us is discontentment about how God has formed us. Mass media inevitably has an overwhelming influence in many girl’s lives–if you look at a magazine, just glance at the TV screen as you pass by, read the newest book with its cliche heroine, or even browse the Internet, you’re almost certainly going to learn the predominating idea of the “ideal woman.” If these standards came from the Bible and encouraged us to become like the “holy women . . . who trusted in God” (1 Pet. 3:5, KJV), great–sadly, today’s culture rather endorses the flirtatious, “[subtil-hearted]” (Pr. 7:10) girl. We’re thus constantly tempted to dislike how God has made us, since we never match that deceptive, Photoshopped picture of a girl anyway. How does the BIble teach us to see ourselves, then?
If I said that we are to love ourselves, maybe it would sound conceited. However, God does indeed want us to love how He has created us, and to do otherwise would show rebellion against his will. We need not constantly worry if we look attractive to others, since we can have confidence in our Maker, who has created us beautifully. In Matthew 22:39, our Lord commands us to “love [our] neighbour as [ourselves].” Loving ourselves means to love how God has created us–”fearfully and wonderfully” (Psa. 139:14) in His image and for His glory! Only then can we learn to properly love others. Our attitude to ourselves shouldn’t be governed by society’s standards–in one culture, skinny is called attractive, in another, larger women are praised.
Our main concern shouldn’t be how we look outwardly, but whether we have a proper relationship with God. A heart that is focused on appearances will eventually come out in all its ugliness. It’s surprising how much difference a girl’s attitude makes on her looks.
Should we then completely disregard how we looks as vain and worldly? Of course not! Too often Christian girls use the excuse that “God cares about the heart” to justify their immodesty or even their reluctance to exercise. Our clothes, style, and the way we carry ourselves all reflect our hearts. Our bodies will testify who rules our souls–this is why we try keep fit and eat healthily. If we truly love God, we will honor him outwardly as well as spirit.
Ultimately, then, we can praise God for how beautiful he has made each one of us. Let’s not abuse our bodies as the world advises–we should strive to care for the temples (1 Cor. 6:19) our loving Father has given us and manifest the quiet assurance we can have in Him.