Thursday's Thought

"Charm can mislead and beauty soon fades.
The woman to be admired and praised
is the woman who lives in the Fear-of-God." -Proverbs 31:30, The Message

"Charm and grace are deceptive, and beauty is vain [because it is not lasting], but a woman who reverently and worshipfully fears the Lord, she shall be praised!" -Prov. 31:30, Amplified

Don't Be Fooled

Rachel smiled at herself in the mirror as she got ready for Sunday morning church. I love the way my new necklace complements this dress, she thought. I wonder if anyone at church will notice? Maybe they’ll see the way the flowers on my dress bring out the blue in my eyes.

At church that morning, Rachel’s smile was as big as the sun as she basked in other’s compliments. “I love your beautiful dress,” someone would say. “Oh, where did you get that necklace?” another asked. Rachel’s favorite compliment came from Mrs. Hampton, who observed, “The blue in that dress just perfectly matches your gorgeous eyes.” Rachel didn’t really try to draw attention to herself, but others’ opinions of her was her consuming interest and the subject of her thoughts at church that day.

“Good morning, Rachel! It’s good to see you this morning.”

Rachel turned to see who had greeted her, expecting another flattering compliment. “Oh, hi, Chloe,” she answered dryly when she saw who had said her name. Rachel didn’t talk to Chloe much. She was a nice girl, but not exactly…fashionable.

Later that day, Rachel was telling her mom all the compliments she had received. “And then Mrs. Hampton commented on how my eyes match this dress so well,” she excitedly told her mother. Just as Rachel was about to elaborate on Mrs. Hampton’s comment, Rachel’s mom interrupted her.

“Did you see how beautiful Chloe was today?” her mom asked.

“Um, Chloe?” Rachel was confused at the sudden change in topic.

“Yeah – she was glowing. Everyone noticed it.”

“What was she wearing?”

“Chloe was wearing a beautiful smile. She was clothed with kindness and humility (Col. 3:12). She talked with anyone who was down or lonely, and helped Mrs. Hampton to her car,” Rachel’s mom paused before she thoughtfully finished, “Chloe had a worshipful spirit at church this morning.” Rachel didn’t know what to say. Her mom smiled knowingly at her. “Rachel, honey, outward beauty comes and goes – it really doesn’t matter. True beauty is from the heart and shows itself in the way we act. Some people think that outward beauty is all that matters, but don’t be fooled: The truly beautiful people are the wholehearted servants of God.”

Rachel had a lot to think about as she went to sleep that night. She thought about the verse she had found when she looked up the word “beauty” in the concordance. “Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised” (Proverbs 31:30, NLT). Maybe I’ll get up early and read my Bible before breakfast, she decided.

Beautiful in God's Eyes

The day started early for Ruth - as usual. At the crack of dawn she busily began preparing the morning meal.

“Good morning, Naomi,” she cheerfully greeted her mother-in-law when she entered the kitchen soon after Ruth. “Don’t you worry about a thing, Mother,” Ruth assured Naomi. “I’ll be in the fields until dinnertime, and then I’ll come home with plenty of food for dinner.”

“Bless you, my daughter,” Naomi thankfully replied.

All day long, Ruth labored in the grain fields, picking up what wasn’t gathered by the paid laborers. Israelite law at that time mandated, ‘“When you reap your harvest in your field and forget a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it. It shall be for the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands’” (Deut. 24:19). Although a foreigner, Ruth gathered alongside the native Israelites.

Ruth chose to leave her home, family, country, religion, and life as she knew it in order to serve her mother-in-law. Forsaking the false gods of her upbringing, Ruth chose to serve the One True God. Diligently, she spent her days working hard in a land not her own among a people not her own. She cheerfully gave of herself to do right. God never ignores such faithfulness.

One day the owner of the grain field, Boaz, briefly passed by the workers. “‘The LORD be with you!’” he said (Ruth 2:4).

“‘The LORD bless you,’” the poor workers replied (Ruth 2:4).

As Boaz went on his way, he noticed a young woman who wasn’t quite like the others. “'Whose young woman is this?'” Boaz asked his foreman (Ruth 2:5).

“‘She is the young Moabite woman, who came back with Naomi from the country of Moab. She said, “Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves after the reapers.” So she came, and she has continued from early morning until now, except for a short rest’” (Ruth 2:6-7).

Boaz spoke to Ruth, “‘Now, listen, my daughter, do not go to glean in another field or leave this one, but keep close to my young women. Let your eyes be on the field that they are reaping, and go after them...And when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink what the young men have drawn’” (Ruth 2:8-9).

“Thank you, sir, but why have you taken notice of me?” Ruth asked.

“Boaz answered her, ‘All that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband has been fully told to me, and how you left your father and mother and your native land and came to a people that you did not know before. The LORD repay you for what you have done, and a full reward be given you by the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge!’” (Ruth 2:11-12). Ruth’s example of true beauty was seen by those around her in her devotion to her family and her humble obedience to God.

Whether other people think of us as beautiful or not, we should only be concerned about what God thinks of us. God saw a beautiful heart in Ruth, just as He saw in her descendant, Mary, centuries later. He knew that her heart was submitted to His will and looked for opportunities to serve others. It shouldn’t be any surprise that a servant’s heart is a beautiful heart in the sight of God. After all, “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

It Depends on Your Viewpoint

It is impossible to miss what this world thinks about beauty. Everywhere we look - in magazines, movies, and malls - we are bombarded with the world's standard of fake, unattainable, physical perfection. To the world, value is measured by physical, outward beauty. However, according to the One who made us, beauty isn't measured by appearance. “But the LORD said to Samuel, ‘Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart’” (1 Samuel 16:7). True beauty is a life fully surrendered to God's will and content to follow it. Outward beauty comes and goes, but authentic beauty is that of the heart. “Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight. For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful” (1 Peter 3:3-5).

Shortly before Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion, He was having dinner in the home of a man named Simon. While He was there, a woman approached Jesus and anointed him with a bottle of very expensive perfume. Indignant, the disciples protested, saying that she should have sold the perfume and given the money to the poor. Jesus, however, understood her act of worship. “‘Why do you trouble the woman?’” He asked His disciples. “‘For she has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me…Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her’” (Matthew 26:10-11, 13). Jesus could see her desire to seek Him and He declared her worshipful heart as one of beauty.

When the world sees our lack of concern for their standards, they won't know what to make of us. The lives we live solely for the glory of God, seeking His will and pleasure, will radiate a beauty the world isn't used to seeing. In God's eyes, the truly beautiful heart has a devotion to God and a love for others. They care more about others and most about God's glory. The truly beautiful person is humble and seeks what God says is important.

So what's a girl to do? There is a constant pull for us - will our focus be beauty as the world dictates or that which is truly beautiful in the eyes of God? It is not an easy choice. The hardest part is that we have to answer the same question every day; it is a daily decision. However, as we follow God’s standards of beauty and obey His calls for obedience, we will find ourselves rejoicing in the blessing He has given us. We will find new freedom in bucking the world’s standards and submitting to the words of Christ. Submission to the way of God brings joy...and beauty.

Amma

It was a typical day in the small community in India. “Amma,” a middle-aged woman from Ireland, was spending her day the way she spent all others: teaching young girls, caring for babies, training new helpers, and carrying out the innumberable other duties taht come with having a “family” with well over fifty members. Plainly dressed in a white sari, the Irish woman had chosen to dress as the poor of the poor did, refusing to pay more for a brighter color. Amma’s real name was Amy Carmichael.

As Elisabeth Elliot, herself a missionary as well as one of Amy Carmichael’s many biographers, said of Amy, “The preoccupations of seventeen-year-old girls - their looks, their clothes, their social life - do not change very much from generation to generation. But in every generation there seem to be a few who make other choices. Amy was one of the few” (Elisabeth Elliot, A Chance to Die: The Life and Legacy of Amy Carmichael). That attitude stayed with Amy throughout her life. Never concerned about the opinions of others, Amy simply didn’t bother herself with others’ judgments of her. Her concern was the will of God and how He wanted her to serve and glorify Him.

As is true of all undertakings that gain world-wide attention, Amy Carmichael’s work in India attracted many hopeful helpers - some valuable, others only adventure-seekers. Unfortunately, numerous newcomers found themselves disillusioned with the countless menial tasks required of them - they felt that such work was beneath them. Leading by example, Amy showed those around her what it means to do everything - even cleaning and caring for messy, crying babies - as working for the Lord. In her devotional book If, Amy observed, “If by doing some work which the undiscerning consider 'not spiritual work' I can best help others, and I inwardly rebel, thinking it is the spiritual for which I crave, when in truth it is the interesting and exciting, then I know nothing of Calvary love.” Willingly, Amy labored at whatever work God brought her way.

Amy spent her life selflessly laboring to bring other people to a relationship with Jesus Christ. Even if her clothes were lowly, even if her work was often menial in our view, in God’s eyes, her life was a beautiful act of devotion to Him. “How lovely...are the feet of him who brings good news...who announces salvation” (Is. 52:7). Amy Carmichael did not pursue attention or worldly beauty. By living a life obedient to the will of God and solely for His glory, Amy became a glowing illustration of true beauty - of what God performs with a heart wholly committed to Him.

Thursday's Thought

I have not been able to figure out how to center this video correctly! If you would like to see all of the video, you can see it at Leslie Ludy's blog, Set Apart Girl (click here for the video).