Beauty, not the Beast!

The point God has taught me lately has not been anything earth-shattering, nor has it even included a “wow” moment. But I know that if I struggle with this sometimes, coming out to share it might help someone else who needs to hear this truth. I have found myself looking in the mirror and questioning, “Am I beautiful?” Sometimes my mind ponders if I exercise more, work harder, or if I am a nicer person it will add to the beauty that God sees in me. While all of this, in part, adds to a beauty of a certain kind, none of these things can change the way the Lord sees me. Even if I have messy hair, no makeup, and haven’t worked out in a week, that doesn’t change the fact that God looks at me and says, “You are beautiful!” He looks at a different kind of beauty: MY HEART.

I am learning that what this world calls character (excellence, habit, frame of mind, emotions, reputation, personality) God calls beauty. These things are shaping who I am and who I will be. Let me throw in here that even if I have a really bad day, and I am snapping at everyone in sight and have a self-loathing attitude, God still tells me that I am beautiful. At the time I might not be listening, but if I can learn to stop and breathe during hectic moments in my life, I know that I will hear Him confidently say, “You are beautiful!” Sometimes that is all I need to hear to change my attitude completely. He doesn’t put any measure on what I have done that day to call me beautiful. These portions of character are not instantly attained. In fact, it sometimes takes years to begin to make some parts of character a habit! I constantly ask the Lord for strength and little reminders of the goals that I want to pursue. I want a pure heart with a good conscience. Every decision that I make is something that will affect me and others around me.

In the last few weeks I have been reading and re-reading Romans 8. It still boggles my mind to think that I have the Holy Spirit in me constantly, and I have a choice to listen to the lying voice of the devil or the unchanging voice of the Lord! I hope that I never lose that awe of what God has shown me in this passage. I am a new person. I am not who I once thought I was. I am filled with the Holy Spirit who shapes who I am with every action or thought that I have! Who are we portraying? Are we portraying a selfish attitude or a willing spirit? We are His children and because of that His beauty is constantly in us! Will we allow Him to show who He is in our lives?

This post was written by Hannah Dillard.