The Simple Life at Home

First of all, an apology. Last week I linked to the incorrect site for The Preacher's Wife by omitting a hyphen. The link above is correct.

This lesson focused on beauty - both inward and outward. Really about how society judges beauty vs. how God judges beauty. This is something that many women struggle with. A negative self-image is pervasive. When we look in the mirror, we are often disappointed with what we see. But is God? We know that God looks upon the heart, the inward beauty. And yet...

I am just as guilty of this. I hate my hair, my skin, my shape (hey, round is a shape too!). But my concern needs to be what God's concern is. What is the state of my heart? Am I obedient? Am I compassionate? Am I kind? Am I righteous? Do I love Him?

Is it wrong to want to look your best? Absolutely not! According to the lesson today, Moses was a beautiful baby and perhaps this was ordained by God to make that Egyptian princess fall in love with him at first sight and take him in as her own. Putting our best foot forward shows respect, not just for the God who created us, but also for our husbands. Plus, in this society, it earns you a right to be heard. But what you have to say once you have that audience is what God is really concerned with.

We are from the city of God. The example in the lesson said we should be like Eva Gabor in "Green Acres" - a city woman in the country! I love this show and will never think of it the same again, but this is a wonderful analogy. She left her splendid home to live somewhere much more rough and tumble, but she never lost her glamour. She sparked and shone and everyone knew that she wasn't from there. That's how we should be, making everyone notice our different spirit and wonder why. That's when we'll have the opportunity to share Christ's redeeming love with them.

Here are the questions from the lesson and my responses.

What is your initial response when anyone suggests you are beautiful? Definitely I feel as though the person is just saying it to be kind. It actually makes me feel very uncomfortable.

Do you find you engage in a lot of negative 'self-talk'? How much of your thought life does this form of thinking consume? All the time! This is something that I really have to get control of because it's become a real problem for me.

Has it ever occurred to you that you are a City Girl? How do you plan to use this knowledge? No, it honestly never had, but I love it! I'm going to walk a little taller, be a little bit more proud of the fact that I am a heavenly citizen, a daughter of the king!

In what ways has your view of Godly beauty changed as a result of these Scriptures? I knew all this to start with, but it's internalizing it that counts. I'm just going to pray that God helps me remember it and focus on making my spirit beautiful.