Beauty is in the eye of the beholder

Some habits die hard.

They require great persistence, perseverance, prayer, hard work, faith, and an abundance of grace to overcome.

One such habit is that of speaking negatively about ourselves.

How easily we slip in to it.

I can barely register my reflection in a mirror without having to resist the temptation to sigh, frown and groan.

Years of conditioning and believing the wrong things have left their mark mentally, never mind the physical ravages of chronic sickness and signs of sinking flesh as I grow older.

Low self-esteem comes naturally to those who feel "framed, boxed, categorised, sifted, found wanting in society's eyes" and that's quite a few of us for starters.

It's not just about physical beauty (or the lack thereof) either. We can feel ugly on the inside too.

What tends to get forgotten is that we were fearfully and wonderfully made by One who pronounced us perfect in His sight.

God sees beauty in our brokenness and He already sees us perfected in Christ.

He looks at us through the eyes of grace and wants us to see ourselves in the same light.

"Can you trade your criticism for his gentleness and your impatience with yourself for his everlasting care?" ~ Holley Gerth 'If We Could Have Coffee'

Our lives here consist of being changed from glory to glory. 

And the amazing thing is, we have the life and light of Jesus within us by His Spirit. 

It shines with a radiance all of its own as we exchange our ashes for His beauty.

When I saw the topic Holley had given us this week {'You are beautiful..as you are'} I snorted derisively at myself,"Well that's one to miss. What do you know about looking or feeling beautiful?"

And I concede my ignorance.

Who would feel beautiful 'as they are' when most days they wear PJs, have bed-head, no make-up on, look exhausted and ill?

But I am learning.

Learning to silence the inner critic.

Learning to look in the mirror of His word and believe I am who God says I am.

Learning to rise up and refuse to receive any derogatory labels (self-imposed or otherwise), pigeon-holing or negative comments.

And, friend, it's hard work. It's a battle each and every day to have our minds transformed. But it's also worthwhile.

Because if we believe the lie that we are less-than, ugly, worthless, failures, then the enemy is winning the battle in our minds.

God wants us to have that mind in us which is also in Christ Jesus, and that includes seeing ourselves through His eyes as our minds are gradually renewed.

Beauty is said to be in the eye of the beholder. 

Well, guess who is beholding and pronouncing you beautiful, just as He has since He planned for you to be here? No less a person than God Himself.

We are far more than our appearance suggests. Man looks at the outward appearance but God looks at the heart.

Our inner beauty? What does that look like? 

A spirit surrendered to God is eternally youthful, ageless, beautiful.

Giving out a glow to warm other hearts and lives. 

A light to dispel darkness.

A heart beating in tune with the One who made us.

An offering of hope, grace and encouragement to others.

And who wouldn't want to be beautiful like that? I know I would.

Accept, believe and receive it, my friend:"You are beautiful..as you are"

Joining here with Holley and Jennifer. 

Becoming

Go on, you know you can't resist it. You just have to sneak a look. Who doesn't want to at least check on their appearance from time to time? If only to have a running dialogue with themselves such as:

• I look a fright
• My hair's a mess
• Are those toothpaste smears?
• Oops, that's not straight
• Where did THAT come from?
• Oh bother, lipstick on my teeth again
• Must be the light, I can't look that bad, can I?

Who knows, it might be one of those flattering mirrors that don't leave you looking zombie-like or washed out and ill. Rather it enhances your natural radiance and perception of how you appear. If Only. 

Living as we do in a world where everyone and everything is judged on appearance, it is all too easy to feel unlovely and irrelevant if we fail to match up to society's ideals. Instead of simply cleaning the mirror, we may want to erase the unwanted image we see reflected there.

But that's not the full picture. The REAL you isn't found in the mirror. That's just your face and body

In our youth and beauty oriented and celebrated society we often set such store on appearance that we miss what is Really Important. This is something I have to remind myself of on a regular basis. Having had chronic illness for over 20 years with M.E and other conditions, there is no doubt that the side-effects of insomnia, continual exhaustion, pain and taking frequent medication  - never mind the natural ageing process and menopause - are clearly visible in my external appearance. 

I seldom look into a mirror these days without lamenting about where the person I used to be has disappeared to. She can't be that woman with exhaustion etched into her face, grey pallor, permanent dark circles, pouches under her eyes and ropey hair, can she? How I look on the outside doesn't match how I feel on the inside. My spirit still feels young and vibrant.

The background I grew up in gave me cause to feel insecure because I had a dysfunctional childhood and our parents made unfair comparisons between my non-identical twin sister and myself. She was dubbed the 'pretty one' while I had to be consoled with being the 'clever one'. Both of us struggled to live up to and then overcome our labels. Parents be aware.

Shaking off inferiority, insecurity and early years conditioning was painful but necessary and only achievable for me when I came to faith in Christ and began to see myself as He sees me.

"The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." ~ 1 Samuel 16:7

We tend to major on external things whereas God wants our focus to be primarily on internal ones - our heart, soul (mind, will and emotions) and spirit. 

He has already paved The Way for us to come to know Him through having a relationship with Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour. Then the radiance of Christ begins to reflect in our lives as we grow in knowledge and experience of Him and His word

Amazing as it seems, God sees us as:

Acceptable

Beloved

Complete

This is who we are In Christ. It is a gradual awakening that unfolds as we place our faith and trust in Him and continue to surrender every area of our lives to His Lordship. We start on a journey of change and discovery that leads to becoming all that God intended us to be when He created us as unique, special and greatly loved by Him.

"So we're not giving up. How could we? Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without His unfolding grace....there's far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can't see now will last forever"

~ 2 Corinthians 4:16 -18 The Message

Back to the mirror.

These days my eyes slide towards it and I grimace, sigh resignedly and hope to find a better image next time I look. When I feel up to the task then a bit of make-up and a smile go a long way towards helping me feel better. But that's only a minor outer adjustment.

A mirror may show our current state outwardly but doesn't reveal our growing, developing and future state inwardly. Beauty is far more than skin deep. We are all subject to change, illness, ageing and eventual decay.

What we are becoming, day by day by God's grace, gives us encouragement to believe for greater change to be manifested in our lives in the future.

The process of becoming Christ-like can feel painful. For now, we are Works in Progress. It is a gradual process of transformation as our minds are renewed and lives surrendered to God.

We are exposed to God's mirror through His word and can see our faults and failings in greater detail. He will work relentlessly to achieve His purpose of making us into the image of Jesus, little by little. However, the hands that carve and shape us are tender hands of love and grace.

"And we, who with unveiled faces reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into His likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit" ~ 2 Corinthians 3:18

'Becoming'

You've broken through,

infiltrated the carapace.

I feel You invading

the space

I'd called my own.

Working away purposefully

from the inside out -

yet I evade Your touch

throw off spasms

of irritation

as You make

the place 

Your home.

Chafed by events

beyond control

resistance persists in me

though a softer yielding ensues.

My naked exposure

tenderly covered by

Your mantle of Love.

I am remade, renewed,

pearlised, polished,

strong and true.

Breathing out my fears

I settle 

into the frame 

for which I was made -

a worthy container

for You.

©JoyLenton2012

Over to you:

How do you feel about the process of transformation that God is doing in your life?

What can we do that impedes or advances it?

You're very welcome to join in the discussion.