Beautiful in God's Eyes - The Crosswalk Devotional - June 30
Beautiful in God’s Eyes
By Alexis A. Goring
“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” – Psalm 139:14 (NIV)
Do you believe you are beautiful? The Bible says we are “fearfully and wonderfully made” by God, and He makes everyone beautiful. But because of the negative effect of sin in this world, many of us—especially women—fail to believe that God sees us as His marvelous masterpiece (Ephesians 2:10). We are all delightful in God’s eyes.
Yet pop culture constantly defines and redefines what they think beauty is for humankind. Oftentimes, the messages we are given create anxiety and make us question how God made us. Sometimes it even drives us to make changes to God’s masterpiece.
In 2010, Jessica Simpson’s “The Price of Beauty” reality show aired on television in the USA. She traveled around the world with her two best friends to interview women in different countries about what they considered beautiful and the lengths they’d go to meet the world’s standards. In one episode, they met a woman in Brazil who had more than 40 plastic surgeries. She was a tall blonde who was possibly in her thirties. Her skin appeared smooth and blemish-free, and her body was toned without any stretchmarks or saggy skin. But what she said to Jessica and her friends saddened my heart. This woman told them that when she looks in the mirror and sees something she doesn’t like, she changes it, resulting in many cosmetic procedures. Her story saddened me because the Bible says we are God’s workmanship created in His image. God didn’t make a mistake when He created me and you; He loves everything about us.
While I wouldn’t want to have plastic surgeries to fix anything I consider a flaw, I can relate to the pressure this world puts on people—especially to look perfect by society’s standards. We are taught from an early age what is beautiful in this world and what is not. We begin to scrutinize everything from our hair texture to our skin tone to our weight and the size of our clothes. We feel the pressure to conform to the ways of this world, especially where beauty is concerned. We want to be liked and loved. We want to fit in. We want to be desired because of our outward appearance. But, dear heart, don’t you know that you are already beautiful in God’s eyes?
I’d like to encourage you to start seeing yourself the way Your Maker sees you. Loved. Precious. Priceless. You, my dear, are God’s masterpiece.
There’s a song by Rachael Lampa and TobyMac called “Perfectly Loved.” The lyrics to this song will drive the point home about how you are perfectly made and beloved by God. There is nothing wrong with you that needs to be fixed. Don’t listen to the lies of this world about their standards. Look to God for the true definition of beauty, and you’ll see that you already meet that standard. There’s nothing you need to change about yourself to be treasured by Him.
What you have on the inside of you is more important than how you look on the outside. The Bible says that it is your “inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit” that “is of great worth in God’s sight” (1 Peter 3:4 NIV). It’s not about wearing the clothes that the fashion world says are in season, nor is it about exercising until you have zero body fat and a toned tummy. It’s not about “fixing” what you consider unattractive. God values a tender heart of compassion, a kind personality that cares about all people and prays for them, and a faith in God that can move mountains. Remember: What matters is how God sees you and what He thinks of you. You are one of His precious children. His heart for you overflows with goodness. God wants to give you good gifts like true friendships, quality time with loved ones, healthy food to eat, clean water to drink, a safe place to live, and the ultimate gift of salvation because He wants to spend eternity with you.
God offers you pure, true, enduring, and complete love. He’s the one who will adore you no matter what happens to how you look. He will never leave you nor forsake you. He thinks you’re worth dying for (John 3:16). If only you could see yourself how your Creator sees you, it would change your world.
Intersecting Faith and Life:
What stops you from seeing yourself the way God sees you? How can you work toward embracing how God made you and seeing your beauty?
Further Reading:
Read my devotional book, Stories and Songs of Faith: My Journey with God.
Photo credit: ©Taylor Wright/Unsplash
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Related Resource: How Habit Stacking Will Help You Discipline Your Mind, Body, & Spirit
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