25 March 2011

True Beauty Conversation: For His Glory Alone

Julia and I are exploring the meaning of Beauty, intersecting Beauty with the word of God, and letting Beauty live in our lives. Inspired by a joint feeling of just not measuring up in the beauty category, we're tackling some hard questions:
  • What is Beauty? And does it reside in me?
  • And when my husband says that I’m beautiful, how can I receive those words as truth in a culture that says the opposite?
  • What am I going to teach my daughters about Beauty?
  • And most importantly, what does the Word of God say about Beauty?
Join us as we converse about a topic that touches the heart of all women.
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Dearest Julia,

Let me be honest: your last letter provoked an intial reaction from me that was extremely negative.  I sat down and tried to justify why I did not want to hear your message.  I even made a list of excuses:

  • one bottle of fancy wrinkle cream + one tube of mascara + one box of permanent hair dye= enough money to feed, clothe, and give a Compassion Child the gift of hearing the gospel for a whole month!
  • I'm a bit of an hippie outdoorsy type who somewhat shun beauty products.  I wash my hair with baking soda and vinegar.  I moisturize and protect my body from sunburn with coconut oil.  I've never had a pedicure or manicure in my life.
  • I want my daughters to be little girls for as long as possible.  I want them to be smearing lipstick around their whole mouth while prancing around in dress up clothes and mommy's heels at eight or even 10 years of age.  I want them turning cartwheels and climbing trees in their "princess dresses" while hosting a tea party with friends.
  • I want to talk to them more about the beauty of a heart filled with the Fruits of the Spirit than about how to shave their legs, or what styles flatter their shape.
But the truth is: the reason I reacted so violently toward your post is because I'm so sinfully prideful that I should weep in repentance.


Because, if I'm truly honest, I reacted the way I did because of my own scars:
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Hop on over to Julia's to read the rest of this post


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1 comment:

Jessica said...

I read this Friday's letter this morning and wanted to share that it has been at the forefront of my thoughts since.

I definitely don't want to teach my daughter vanity, but I do believe we are to care for what God gives us (self, home, spouse children, etc.). Twinside Out puts it well. It is a fine line to walk.

But more importantly, I want to be the one to teach my daughter, not someone or something else, what true beauty means.

Thank you both so much for letting us travel this road with you!

March 25, 2011 at 4:47 PM

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