"True Beauty: a Beauty of the Heart"
Renee Pratt
I shook with laughter. I was sitting in one of those straight-backed office chairs that haunt dentist and doctor's offices across America. In my hands was a copy of a magazine I'd picked up after stuffing my Greek workbook in my backpack. A dentist's office was hardly conducive to studying Greek. The waiting room was filled with the cacophony of my younger siblings discussing and bantering across the room, accompanied by the radio.
The reason I was laughing? I was reading a story about a woman addicted to make-up. She had such a poor self-image, she couldn't think of going out to get her mail without a facial makeover. Deciding one day to nip this in the bud, she purposed to go without a speck of make-up. She groaned in the mirror as she charged herself up to head downstairs. What will my husband say? She thought.
Much to her surprise, this woman's husband looked up from his bowl of cereal and smiled, "Hey honey, you look fabulous today."
She was shocked. He couldn't just be trying to look nice. She hadn't told him about her plan. Later on as she finally ventured beyond her dooryard to pick up groceries at the store, she felt tempted to at least dab a little make-up on. Deciding against it, she jumped in her vehicle before she could change her mind and steeled herself for the stares she felt she'd receive.
She was in for another surprise. At the checkout, the cashier looked at her twice before saying, "What kind of foundation do you use? It looks great…natural."
The lady almost choked. Was this for real?
~
I'm not out to wage war on Cover Girl and Mary Kay. (You might think so, if you were aware that I knew so little about make-up I had too google for make-up companies!) I just want to make us ladies think. Where do we place our worth? What do we highly value and esteem? When we think of our image, what do we think of the most?
A maiden of God is beautiful. Even with ruddy cheeks and wind-blown hair. There is something beyond any outward discrepancy she might have (or think she has), that makes her charming. She doesn't have to be model thin like she may think, to be attractive. A truly beautiful woman is one who is….
Kind ~ A beautiful maiden has a tender heart towards others. She is sensitive to others needs and tries to think of ways she can help and aid other people. She is accommodating wherever she can be. She seeks ways to serve and minister. She lovingly extends herself beyond her comfort zone, in an effort to show the kindness of God.
Pure ~ A beautiful maiden has a pure heart. She is uncontaminated by the worldly and fleshly pursuits parading across the world on the television and radio, in the newspapers and magazines. She seeks to think only on things that are positive and upright. She desires to keep her hands clean. Her motives are sincere. She does nothing for personal gain.
I shared the story I read in the dentist office, because of what it made me think. What would our world be like if God's maidens would consider how their heart looked before greeting their families or entering public? What impact we could have as His daughters, if we would check and guard our hearts from evil or wrong, before communicating and interacting with others. The strength of our testimony would be phenomenal. Maybe some one would ask what we do to be so gentle. Or what makes our eyes shine so brightly.
A maiden of God is beautiful, because her heart is beautiful. Because He has renewed and redeemed her soul. She is cherished by a heavenly Father and loved by Him with a boundless love. She is refined and sifted by His hands and molded at His touch. She could cover her face with Mary Kay and have every hair in place. She could put on a dress with pastel flowers and slip on a pair of white sandals. But if her heart was ill towards others, if her spirit was one of complaint - she wouldn't shine forth, for true beauty is a beauty of the heart. ~
Renee Pratt is one of eight daughters - and she has five brothers too. Besides writing, she's a scrap booking junkie, a cookie guru and an avid reader.
