Everywhere I go, I see girls who constantly change the color of their hair, cake on the make-up, wear clothes that this world would consider fashionable but make me cringe, and sometimes wear high heels that look like they will topple at any minute. Some of these are people I know and when I see them it breaks my heart. What I am about to say is not what the world would say and is not considered fashionable by the world's standards. But it's what God says.
1 Peter 3:3-4 states "Your beauty should not consist of outward things like elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold ornaments or fine clothes; instead, it should consist of the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very valuable in God's eyes." Can it get any plainer? My hearts breaks when I see people who constantly change the color of their hair and who constantly are trying to make themselves up so much, they look plastic. It may not be intended, but when I see these people I see them as not happy with the way God created them. And my heart breaks, because I think they are beautiful just the way God made them. Psalm 139: 14 states " I will praise You, because I am wonderfully and fearfully made. Your works are wonderful and I know this very well." God made you. And the hair color He gave you, the color of your eyes, the profile of your face....He gave you for a reason. Do you think He made a mistake? You were created in His image. He wanted you to have that hair color and He made you beautiful just the way you are. You don't have to go paint on the make-up like you are a china doll. I am in no way against wearing make-up and I think it's great when you want to accent what God has given you, but please don't put so much on that you cover up the natural beauty God gave you. It just looks unnatural and weird, like you have a problem with the way you look and you want to mask it.
I am having to train myself to look in the mirror before I go anywhere, whether it be school or work or church, to ask myself "Am I too flashy?" "Am I drawing too much attention to myself?" I shouldn't be trying to distract people with how I look on the outside, but let my inward beauty which God has cultivated in me to shine through. So I don't go for the really high heels and the most fashionable clothes that are in fact not modest, because I know God has called me to something more. He has called me to lead a godly life and it's not easy, but it's His standard and I shouldn't lower it for any reason. I may not be the most popular person, but neither was Jesus. It's the joy of the Lord that comes from the heart that makes a woman truly beautiful. Otherwise, she is just a pretty, empty corpse.
So please, before you go put on tons of make-up or try to make yourself look like a Hollywood Movie Star (and yes I believe those people look plastic and fake), find joy in the way God created You. He makes no mistakes and if you are a Christian, His beauty shines from the inward person of your heart. He made you beautiful from the inside-out, not from the outside-in. The world's definition of beauty is not the same as God's definition of beauty. Which one are you living for? I pray for myself and every other girl or woman I know, that they would live for God's definition of beauty. It's the only way you will truly be satisfied for He gives us a joy that is unspeakable.
