True Beauty
There is a clear portrayal of what qualifies as “beauty” in our appearance-obsessed culture. Especially for us girls. But is that true beauty?
As I let go of my own appearance obsession, which played out as disordered eating and compulsive exercise in my life, this notion of true beauty comes up again and again for me.
A big part of my healing journey has been holding up the world’s beauty standard and examining it for myself… you know, really looking at it closely for what it is, and asking myself: Is this what is important to me?
The answer, of course, is no. But I sure wasn’t acting like it.
Having this answer move from my head to my heart has been a process. Something that has helped me in this process is exposing myself to other ideas about beauty and re-defining it for myself.
So what is true beauty? I don’t have an official definition I am ready to share yet. What it means to me is still being molded as I learn to live this out, following Jesus not diets.
So far, this Bible verse is my cornerstone on the matter:
But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7 (ESV)
I love this truth. We’ve probably all heard it before, it’s what’s on the inside that counts. But for whatever reason, I had not truly taken this to heart or applied it to physical beauty until I let this scripture verse really sink in.
A shift from looking only to the outside, as the world would have it, to looking to the inside, as God would have it, has been a powerful shift for me. It’s got me thinking about true beauty in a whole new way.
I’ve compiled a few of my favorite quotes about beauty over on Pinterest. These beauty quotes are are informing my new, true beauty definition as I finally open up to this idea in my heart and let it sink in to my soul.
For more beauty quotes to inspire you and make you question your own beauty ideals, check out my Beauty Quotes Pinterest Board and make sure you follow me on Pinterest.
