Beauty and Pride

I used to have a bit of pride about my appearance.

I grew up mainly in the beautiful southern California culture where beauty is everything.  Every girl or woman wants to, and tries to, look like Barbie there as much as they can.

I remember there was a girl in my high school class where every single day she would wear a short skirt, even if it was freezing outside.  Why?  To be beautiful.  Because that was all that mattered, or seemed to matter at least. 

When I was going into college two of my friends, from church ironically, said to me, "When are you going to do something with your hair?!"  So I felt somewhat obligated to get highlights.  And my hair did look good.  I got like 5 different colors of highlights in my hair. 

But about a year into my college life at Biola I was convicted that I had too much pride about my beautiful hair lol.  So I cut it short and died it to be dark brown again. 

I think it is important that as women we watch out for pride over our appearance.  We need to stop comparing ourselves to other women and focusing so much on our appearance.  I just listened to a great sermon by Jimmy Evans on Insecurity.  He said models have the highest levels of insecurity of anyone, and I believe it.  That is because they let beauty become their idol and their god, as it is for many who live in SoCal.  Of course it's good to look good to an extent, but when our security is in our appearance instead of God, that is really bad, and that leads to high levels of insecurity.   

"God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble."

I knew that my pride over my appearance was hindering my relationship with God.  And everyone has a different thing that they might have pride about; their income, talents, abilities etc.   

I also had some arrogance over my skills in basketball.  I was the best shooter I knew, in practices at least.  I always choked in games though. :)  I had a horrible and discouraging coach so that didn't help.  I also had a lot of pride about my ability to sing, and about my grades and how easy school came to me.

It took a long time for me to realize that any good gift or ability I had was from God.  God was the one who made me and gave me the talents that I had, so all along I should have been giving him the glory and not myself, as I was. 

I was very puffed up with pride until my years in college at Biola. 

I was finally humbled there for various reasons.  I was in a program with a lot of students who were way smarter than me, and I knew it.  So that was humbling. :)  I played intramural basketball but we lost most of our games. :)  I wasn't asked out on a date at all until a month before graduation.  I was in choir but I felt quite inferior singing wise to the people I was singing with.  They sounded like the angels in heaven to me. lol :)

But all that was good.  I needed to be broken and humbled.  I love the quote, "Bend the knee or have it broken."  My security was in all these other things and not God.  God did me a favor in breaking me of the things I was prideful about. 

Verses on outward beauty:

1 Tim. 2:9-10 I desire "that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing, 10 but, which is proper for women professing godliness, with good works." (Prostitutes in that day braided their hair.  It was the way a woman could look the most beautiful in that time. That is why Paul mentions it here.)

1 Peter 3:3-5 "Do not let your adornment be merely outward—arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel— 4 rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God. 5 For in this manner, in former times, the holy women who trusted in God also adorned themselves."

Amen! :)

Pride is very dangerous, in anything.  Beware of pride in your own heart.  God says he detests seven things.  One of them is "haughty eyes."  Don't have haughty eyes.  Don't think you are better than other people in anything.  Be humble in all things.  Amen :) 

God bless!