Most women—including the gorgeous ones!—wish they were more physically beautiful than they are. It seems to be a universal anxiety for nearly all women. That feeling is not helped by having to see photoshopped and airbrushed pictures of physically perfect women in magazines, or by daily viewing news anchorwomen who have whole teams of people “work on them” before they come on the air. One news-anchorwoman when doing a tour through the TV studio said to her guest: “See this room over here? This is where they turn a sow’s ear into a raging beauty!”
Let’s look at this from a spiritual point of view. How come we all didn’t come out of the birth canal flaming beauties? What might be going on here if we look at the whole phenomenon with a little larger perspective?
The scriptures say, regarding our Maker and Redeemer, that He had no handsomeness/beauty, no natural physical draw when He himself visited earth. Hmmmm—Almighty God limited His own physical physique on purpose?
“He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to Him, nothing in His appearance that we should desire Him…” (i.e., on that basis) (Isaiah 53:2).
Could it be that in this choice, He was making sure that there were no distractions to work through to get to the core of who He really was? It seems that the Father did it with deliberateness in crafting the Messiah, via His incarnation and He then apparently additionally allowed it in the great majority of us, no doubt, for the benefit of other gains to our souls, while on earth, and to His kingdom body, as a whole.
Apparently this is not the TIME of glorification, (‘tis reserved for a future chapter) but rather of humility! This is the donkey chapter; the white steed in us comes later. The whole creation waits “to see the sons of God [blindingly and spectacularly] revealed!” (Romans 8:19). This is the “covered glory” chapter; the UN-covering (the slight tweak of the cheek and nose moved into perfection, the tweak of the character into holiness), shall assuredly yet BE! “Those who look to Him are radiant” (Psalm 34:5) “And those who wait for Him will not be ashamed” (Isaiah 49:23; also see Romans 9:33).
My mother used to tell me, regarding any personal shortcoming: “Remember, people care more about their own headache than if you die!” I’ve noted through the years that exceptional personal beauty (and it is the exception) is important only in the initial ten second introduction of people and even then it is quickly eclipsed in all persons, as the personhood behind the edifice immediately pumps forth. People are first and last drawn to the emanation of love, alone. Many a man (in relationship to a woman) has sadly found out that his enjoyment of a beautiful face turned south after an experience or two with the not-so-beautiful self-absorbed character behind it.
It is important to look as nice as we can, given what we’ve got—being unkempt is no joy to be around, either—but we can safely stop at good grooming, cleanliness, pleasant colors, and well-ordered, God-honoring, modest clothing. If we, as believing women, major yet further on improving our insides and on emanating more love (for, who of us doesn’t still have a ways to go in these areas?), He will see to it that a kind of additional heavenly beauty will manifest upon our countenances. We will have beauty at our core—His beauty. And then, those around us wouldn’t trade that for anything.
A woman bedecked only as an ornament or as a glossy model (i.e. merely used by the world as a coat-stand or as a clothes hanger) can, in a matter of minutes be regarded as a waste of humanity—exerting no real contribution or influence upon a very needy world. Everywhere, the world cries for the gentle impress of a godly woman upon people’s souls and circumstances.
For another aspect of this, especially pertaining to married women, see the eBook that explains Sarah's Beauty Secret.
