The Beauty Process debunked:Beauty Secrets that work!

Today while I was driving to work I looked in the mirror and immediately I heard, "Get out of the mirror! You are fearfully and wonderfully made."  The only mirror you should be consumed with is mirroring Christ.

This morning I asked God to search my heart and show me my offensive ways.  I wasn't surprised to hear "Get out of the mirror!" I look in the mirror a lot! It was like I was depending on that mirror to tell me I was beautiful. #truth 

We (talking to myself) have these preconceived notions of what makes us beautiful but my challenge to myself and to you is to adopt God's perspective of what beautiful is.

Here are a few scriptures about how God looks at us.

Psalm 139:14
I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

1 Peter 3:3-5    
 Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes.  Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.  For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful. 

Proverbs 31:3 
Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

Isaiah 61:3
God said he would "bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor. 

1 Samuel 16:7
But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."

1Timothy 4:8
Physical exercise has some value, but spiritual exercise is much more important, for it promises a reward in both this life and the next.

God also called us to be good stewards over all that he has entrusted to us so taking care of your body is important.  Eating right is important.  Exercise is important but this is NOT where true beauty comes from. Wearing fine clothes and taking time to consider your outfit is not a sin.  Wearing make-up is not a sin.  Beauty regimens are not in and of themselves sinful, but anything that you put before God, anything you turn to before God, anything you think about more than God is an idol and idols are NOT of God.  Idols are a type of God meaning it's something that people turn to in place of God when they should actually be turning to the one and only true God.

Exodus 20:3 
"You shall have no other Gods before me."

Anything can be preverted and exalted above God.  Make sure that while you are grooming and primping yourself, you realize that your true beauty comes from your creator.  Cast everything, absolutely everything to God, not above him.

Homework
Each time you look in the mirror repeat one of the above scriptures. Every time I look in the mirror I am going to say "I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well."

I pray that this blog blesses you.
Kisses-P

Start Somewhere. Get to the ROOT!

One thing I am learning is that Obedience/Action follows Faith/Belief.  When you really believe something can happen, your actions start lining up with that Faith item.  One thing to look at when your actions aren’t lining up with your Faith item/Intent, is your belief system.  Do you really believe that what you want is possible? 

In our current economic climate, many people my age don’t believe that they will ever be able to purchase a home, so even if they intend to save for a home, they don’t because they don’t really believe it can happen.  I BELIEVE I AM GOING TO OWN PROPERTY!  I believe it so much that I’ve set up a savings account toward my future home.  This train of thought goes toward various areas of our lives.  Many fail at their dieting attempts because in the back of their minds, they don’t really BELIEVE they can lose the weight. 

All things really are possible through CHRIST (in accordance to his will.)  Once you start to really believe in your FAITH item/INTENT, whatever it may be, your actions will start to line up with your belief system.  If your actions don’t line up with your FAITH item/INTENT, get to the root of the issue.  Ask yourself, do you really believe that what you want can actually happen?

Kisses-P

Let's talk about Discipline...Can you cut it?

I started with this one simple task ;)

Lets talk about discipline.

What exactly is discipline?  Instead of thinking of discipline as a bunch of things you can’t do or have to do….lets think of discipline as a method of allowing you to do everything you want to do.

If you are disciplined enough to run your errands and do your housework during the week, it frees you up to completely enjoy your weekend.  (SUPER PLUS)

Want to a buy a house?       Disciplinary Action: SAVE MONEY.  This action frees you from paying into something you will never own.

Want to be a better writer?  Disciplinary Action: WRITE EVERYDAY.  Gives you endless job opportunities and may even open up another possible income stream.

There were a few different definitions for the word discipline but this one lines up with the train of thought for this blog entry.

Discipline:

Activity, exercise, or a regimen that develops or improves a skill; training:

We want to improve our habits or train ourselves to have good habits.

If you lack discipline here is a tip I learned a few years back.  I use it and it has evolved areas of my life.

Tip:

If there is a particular area or thing you lack discipline in pick one thing and do it everyday as if your life depended on it.

I was the type of person that never made up their bed in the morning.  I always made up my bed after I came home from work so initially, my "One" thing was making sure I made up my bed every morning.  I did that "One" thing even if I was running late or other areas of my home were out of order.  Sometimes we say to ourselves, "everything else needs cleaning, why stop to do this One thing?"  I will tell you why.  Because we are training ourselves to have good habits.  Rome wasn't built in a day nor will building all good habits be done in a day but it does take commitment.  I continued to do this and guess what happened?  It became a habit!  By habit, I don’t mean I’m perfect in that area, but I no longer feel right leaving out of the house without making up my bed.  It's a HABIT.  

Years ago I developed a habit of always wearing a fragrance and earrings whenever I left the house.  Now it's to the point where it doesn’t matter if I am rushing, I always spritz and throw a pair in my purse.

If you want discipline, make sure you utilize this small tip.  Start off with one thing and be sure to do it every single day.  EVERY.SINGLE.DAY.  Once that thing becomes a habit, move onto the next thing.

Now if only I could make washing the dishes every night a habit….Grrrrrrr.