"Beautiful"

I hear your thoughts right now.
I see you looking at that magazine, at that false image of beauty, asking why you don’t look that way.
I hear you listing all the things that you believe are wrong with you, and planning all the things you want to do to change yourself, so that you can look like those images, so that you will be loved and adored.

Come with Me for a moment, My daughter…
Step outside. Watch as the sun dips below the horizon and swirls the last of the day’s light across the sky.  Look at the array of colors it leaves behind.  I painted those colors.

 See the brilliance of the stars, sparkling against the blackness of the night.  Take in the intricate constellations, which have captured the eyes and hearts of mankind for centuries.  I placed those stars there, and I call each one by name.

Look at the majesty of the mountain range.  I sculpted that with My own hands.  Now, look closely at a rose.  I also sculpted it’s petals and arranged them in their swirling formation, painted it in the perfect color, and gave it life to bloom and bring forth it’s fragrance. 

Gaze upon the ocean- see how perfectly every wave rises and crests before crashing against the shore, reflecting the colors of the sky.  Go below its surface, and take in the colors and shapes of the life below- the great coral reef and the colorful fish dancing over it in perfect formation, the great blue whales and silver dolphins breaking the surface with perfect grace.  This is all My work, My creativity.  No beautician, make-up artist, plastic surgeon, personal trainer, or fashion designer could capture such beauty.

 I had no inspiration, no photograph or image to follow as I made this.  My creation is a reflection of My own glory, My own beauty.  I am the One who sits high and exalted on the throne, and the train of My robe fills the temple.  The seraphim cover their feet and their faces in My presence, calling out to one another, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty!  The whole Earth is filled with His Glory!”

The whole Earth is filled with My Glory.  My creation points back to My power, My sovereignty, My perfect Holiness.

And you, My daughter, are a part of that creation.

The Earth was not complete without you.  You were not a nice touch or finishing decoration; you are the crown of My work.  You are the bearer of My image, a reflection of My perfect beauty.

And I am enthralled by your beauty.  So much that, when you were enslaved by sin, I left my throne to set you free.  I laid down My life to restore yours, so that the black stains of sin which marred your beauty could be washed away. 

The world tries to sell you it’s false beauty.  Beauty that saps your strength as you strive to obtain it, that always leaves you feeling like you need “just a bit more” to be perfect.

But how can the world know what beauty really is without knowing Me, when I AM Beauty itself?  What right does this world have to look upon you, made in My own image, and tell you that you are not beautiful?

I, the Creator of the Universe, the Author of Life, the Sustainer of all the lives and breathes, Artist of all things beautiful, I am The One who designed you, who formed every fiber of your being, who breathed life into you. 

And I have called you Beautiful.