You are absolutely beautiful, my darling, with no imperfection in you.
-Song of Songs 4:7
I'm ugly. I'm fat. I'm too short. I'm too tall. My hair is too brown and my eyes are too plain. I'm not pretty enough.
Ever heard those statements? Ever believed them? Those lies are believed by girls everywhere, every day. We apply these labels to ourselves, based on what we think we look like. We criticize, judge, and bring ourselves down based on our outward appearance. Some girls I know have taken this verse to try to remind themselves that God thinks they are beautiful. That God made them beautiful. While I do believe that God uses this verse to remind ladies of that, I think there is another purpose for this verse that we're missing.
You are absolutely beautiful. There is no imperfection in you. I was reading this verse one day and couldn't help but catch the word "in". There is no imperfection in you. I think that is key.
Man does not see what the Lord sees, for man sees what is visible, but the Lord sees the heart.
See? When God made us, He made us in His holy image. Perhaps not only an outer image, but an inner image as well. God, the one who is love, designed us for His love. He didn't create us all to look the same. He created us to receive and accept His love in the very depths of our souls. When God looks at us, He doesn't see our outer image that we spend hours worrying over and hours trying to perfect. He doesn't say, "Oh look, there she is. Her hair is too curly. She needs to fix that. And why isn't she skinnier?" He looks at us and gently proclaims, "This is my daughter. I gave her a spirit of kindness and joy. I gave her a heart of love. There is no flaw in her."
In Luke 3, the genealogy of Jesus is listed. I'm sure I'm not the only one who skips the lists of names I never can pronounce; but on this particular day, I read it. I read the list. And at the very bottom is this verse:
"38 son of Enos, son of Seth, son of Adam, son of God."
How personal is that? Adam, son of God. We were made for Him from the very beginning. We are made in Him. Adam wasn't perfect, but He was made for and by God. It's the same for you and me...
I am absolutely beautiful. With all my flaws and my untamable hair and my need for control. You know how I know that? Because I know that my Lord and Father looks at my heart and He says that I am loved. He says I am perfectly made by Him. He says that I am compassionate and joyous. He sees the part of me that no one else sees. He sees right through my carefully planned outer image and straight into my heart. And you know what He says about that? He says it is perfect. And you don't have to spend hours at the gym. You don't have to spend hours with a flat iron. You don't have to buy all the right clothes. You don't have to fit into size zero jeans. You don't have to spend a ton of money trying to cover up the acne. All you have to do is embrace the love He is pouring over you and open your heart completely to Him. Because you are absolutely beautiful. There is not an imperfection in you.
You are absolutely beautiful. There is no imperfection in you. I was reading this verse one day and couldn't help but catch the word "in". There is no imperfection in you. I think that is key.
Man does not see what the Lord sees, for man sees what is visible, but the Lord sees the heart.
See? When God made us, He made us in His holy image. Perhaps not only an outer image, but an inner image as well. God, the one who is love, designed us for His love. He didn't create us all to look the same. He created us to receive and accept His love in the very depths of our souls. When God looks at us, He doesn't see our outer image that we spend hours worrying over and hours trying to perfect. He doesn't say, "Oh look, there she is. Her hair is too curly. She needs to fix that. And why isn't she skinnier?" He looks at us and gently proclaims, "This is my daughter. I gave her a spirit of kindness and joy. I gave her a heart of love. There is no flaw in her."
In Luke 3, the genealogy of Jesus is listed. I'm sure I'm not the only one who skips the lists of names I never can pronounce; but on this particular day, I read it. I read the list. And at the very bottom is this verse:
"38 son of Enos, son of Seth, son of Adam, son of God."
How personal is that? Adam, son of God. We were made for Him from the very beginning. We are made in Him. Adam wasn't perfect, but He was made for and by God. It's the same for you and me...
I am absolutely beautiful. With all my flaws and my untamable hair and my need for control. You know how I know that? Because I know that my Lord and Father looks at my heart and He says that I am loved. He says I am perfectly made by Him. He says that I am compassionate and joyous. He sees the part of me that no one else sees. He sees right through my carefully planned outer image and straight into my heart. And you know what He says about that? He says it is perfect. And you don't have to spend hours at the gym. You don't have to spend hours with a flat iron. You don't have to buy all the right clothes. You don't have to fit into size zero jeans. You don't have to spend a ton of money trying to cover up the acne. All you have to do is embrace the love He is pouring over you and open your heart completely to Him. Because you are absolutely beautiful. There is not an imperfection in you.
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