For All Christian Women: Discovering a Biblical View of Beauty

I always like to start with something personal, so please bear it with me!

I was around twelve years old when I looked in the mirror and, for the first time, really evaluated my appearance. I was staring at the mirror in my cotton bra and panties and my dull black hair pulled back by a beret. I looked at my reflection and thought, “What a chubby face, oh and look at that so round stomach.” Two years later, it was my sister’s turn. In an oversized t-shirt and panties, she stood at the mirror and gaped at her big thighs and her skinny arms. “I’m so ugly,” she said to herself and I remember how she struggled with these words for years, regardless of all the compliments I’ve always tried to give her.

There’s no denying it; we live in a world that’s obsessed with physical beauty. From TV commercials, magazine racks, department-store mannequins, fashion shows, beauty pageants and Hollywood, the message is always the same: women should be thin and look young and beautiful. Today, the media keeps bombarding us with things like how to dress, how to apply make-up, how to style your hair and what products to use to slow down the process of aging.

The truth is it doesn’t matter if you are already pretty or handsome as long as you participate in this “craze”, start using beauty products used by movie stars and look desirable enough to catch a man.

This is the reality of today’s beauty culture. You may be dishonest, greedy, selfish and unkind on the inside, but if you’ve got a pretty face and smooth, ageless skin, then you are “beautiful.”

Even if you don’t like how you look, I think it’ll be a terrible mistake to base yourself on this world’s beauty standards. Because honestly, they suck!

But, as a Christian, you have to consider what God thinks of our physical appearance. What does the Bible have to say about beauty?

We Are Beautifully Made

Why are women obsessed with beauty? Why the profit margins of cosmetic industries are increasing day by day? Why beauty pageant winners are always interviewed for their beauty secrets? And, why posters of Angelina Jolie are always gracing the bedroom walls of young girls?

Because everyone wants an ageless beauty like Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, hot lips like Scarlett Johansson, attractive eyes like Mila Kunis and a hot hourglass figure like Kim Kardashian.

These stars represent brands of beauty which is the reason why many turn to them for instruction and inspiration regarding what’s fashionable and chic. However, as a Christian, you should not be idolizing these people and instead focus on what God says on you.

In Psalm 139: 4, we read, “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”

Psalms 139: 3 says, “For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.”

And, we read in Job 33: 4, “The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.”

Biblical scriptures tell us that we are the beautiful creatures of God. Our bodies were formed by His great hands and He breathed life into us. The Lord, our God also created us in His image, after His likeness.

Furthermore, the New Covenant that was established by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ restored our identity as God’s stewards, making our bodies the temples of the Holy Spirit. While Christ is the head of the church, we are the body of that church.

So, before you start burdening yourself about your physical appearance, remember that God created you; He lives in you and loves you no matter how you look.