The world around us proclaims what’s beautiful.

We are inundated with images of air-brushed bodies and smiles flashing perfect teeth. We observe Hollywood showcasing stars wearing the latest trends, driving the coolest cars, living in the most stunning houses.

The world tells us beauty is a certain size, a certain hair color, and a certain face shape. It taunts us in order to be successful, happy, rich, etc., we need to embrace what the world considers beautiful. And when we do, life will be perfect. Right?

Wrong.

According to these standards, I’m far from beautiful, and I stand no chance in being successful, happy, rich, and etc. And, if I strive for the world’s beauty (which by the way, might be different next season), I will always come up short.

It’s a good day to stop this madness. It’s a good day to abandon this belief. It is a good day to decide for yourself what’s beautiful.

Don’t let the world decide what is beautiful.

You have your own style, your own tastes, your own groove. Embrace your beautiful self. You don’t have to fit into a mold and look a certain way. Allow you to be you.

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You like short hair rather than long? Embrace it. You enjoy wearing flats rather than heels? Go for it. You prefer a makeup-free face? Super. Be who you are.

Be comfortable in your own skin.

When we strive to be something we’re not, we are far from comfortable. Today, let’s stop the struggle. Let’s glace in a different direction and embrace for ourselves the beauty in which God has already blessed us and in what He delights.

What matters is not your outer appearance—the styling of your hair, the jewelry you wear, the cut of your clothes—but your inner disposition. Cultivate inner beauty, the gentle, gracious kind that God delights in. 1 Peter 3:3-4 MSG

What’s on the inside matters more than what’s on the outside. Let’s spend more our time cultivating the beauty within.

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I praise you because you made me in an amazing and wonderful way. What you have done is wonderful. I know this very well. Psalm 139:14 NCV

You are beautiful already, just the way you are.

So, friend, don’t let the world decide what is beautiful. Smile at the beauty looking back in the mirror. Embrace your own style. Cultivate the beauty within you. Allow God to shine through you.

Empower you to be you.

Now it’s your turn. What do you say is beautiful? How do you define beauty? What is one thing you can do to embrace your own style today? How can you cultivate the beauty within you?

Blessings!

Julie
 

Linking this post with God-sized Dreams, and with friends Holly, Kelly and Anita and Carol.