In fourth grade I transferred to a new elementary school. It was an exciting time—brand new friends, a new location, and even a sweet new house that I could watch being built from the upstairs window of my classroom. The first Wednesday of the year I hopped on the 4th grade girls’ tradition of weekly Bible studies in the basement of my across-the-creek neighbor. My soon-to-be best friend’s mom would open in prayer and then crank some Christian jams for us—you know, the usual Chris Tomlin, Hillsong, and Passion kind of songs. One day, she told us she had a new song for us; it was by Mandisa, who I knew as being fresh off American Idol from the previous season. The more we heard the song, the more we listened to the words. Nowadays, I couldn’t exactly tell you what I learned each week in Bible Study, but I definitely could tell you the message I learned from that song, because it has stuck with me ever since those fateful fourth grade Wednesdays.

“And we read in the gospel of Vogue that we’re all supposed to dress and move and be visions of perfection, such a misconception, cause the real connection is deeper than the eye can see”

You see, the visions of beauty over time and as according to our culture are far different from how we’re supposed to see ourselves and each other. We’ve been trained over time to see our faults, to look in the mirror and critique what we see, to compare ourselves to others, and to discreetly radiate both jealousy and narcissism at the same time. We’re supposed to make ourselves live up to the PhotoShopped models on the covers of magazines, to buy the same brand names as all the girls we associate ourselves with, and to conform to the ways that society sets for us, never stopping to actually think, “Hey, I look good today.” Instead, we look at ourselves and say, “Gah, you really should’ve whitened your teeth last night.” I love Mandisa’s words—“the gospel of Vogue.” We’ve really learned to idolize our appearances and make this “gospel”—what’s supposed to be the life and ministry of Jesus Christ—into a story of our own shallowness and our epic failure to see the marvelous light God has shaped each and every one of us to be.

Here’s a little secret, ladies: beauty, actually, is a heart at rest. Beauty is a calm, quiet spirit. Beauty is the ability to fear God and let Him work through you in everything you do. It is the combination of three things: perfection, sin, and redemption. Everything was created by God in His perfect image, including you! He made you exactly how he wanted you to be; every pound on your body, every hair on your head, and every beat of your heart is perfect according to Him. However, the fall of man causes corruption to run through every fiber of our being. We sin against Him who loves us most; we do things to neglect the fact that our bodies are the holy temples He created. But God sent His son Jesus to redeem us from our wicked ways by his death on the cross that dreary Friday afternoon. We are no longer slaves to sin and imperfection, but judged solely by God, and with God who can stand against us?!

Think about the most beautiful people you know. Often, they're not the ones that you see on the covers of magazines. Instead, they're people who have taught us true confidence, gentle humility, how to love, the art of being joyful and the acts of being strong and courageous. They exemplify what Jesus came on this earth to teach--the fact that despite their imperfections, they know that God is redeeming them, and they work towards an end goal of residing with Him in heaven. He has created us to do so many wonderful things on this earth. With each and every person He makes, He crafts a glorious life plan full of ups and downs and triumphs and lessons learned. He hopes for the absolute best for His people because He loves us so completely.

Beauty is a heart at rest, and the more we strive to be more okay with ourselves and what God has planned for us, the easier it will be to love ourselves as we should. Let the whole world see your true beauty!

"The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims His handiwork." -Psalm 19:1