I am Beautiful. Yes I am. Thank God.

You are beautiful
By Laetitia King

My husband loves the sea.

When he asked me to be his girlfriend, I told him that he might have to reconsider, because there was something he didn't know about me. After a dead silence haunted us for what seemed to take forever, I finally mustered the courage to make my confession....

I didn't like the sea. To be honest, I still don't.

I always feel like a tiny, vulnerable ant trying to battle the gigantic, monstrous waves, a battle I seldom win.

Not only that, I don't like the beach. When I see the golden brown bodies lying next to me I always feel this desperate urge to cover myself with twenty towels, which you can't really do in the scorching Africa sun. Most girls seem very confident in their bikinis, walking around like models on the catwalk, unaware of the attention they are getting - or "not getting." But I am not one of them. Insecurities flood my mind, comparison keeps me company and I always leave the beach with one nagging question:

Am I beautiful?

I once mentioned this inner turmoil to one of my friends after being rejected by a guy during my Varsity years. She looked at me with a "what's the big deal" expression and responded with a very blunt: "Stick a piece of paper on your mirror with the words "I am beautiful" written on it and look at it every morning." I left the conversation thinking I must be the only woman in the world struggling with this ridiculous question. Luckily, Stacey Eldrige in her book Captivating says that most women ask themselves this universal question.

Some churches attempt to answer this complicated question by teaching that God focuses more on the inner beauty than the outer beauty. I always found some comfort in the statement, until I discovered how difficult it was to stay beautiful on the inside. It is much easier to go for a haircut once a month than to continually walk in love! Hence, the turmoil all over again!

Some say I shouldn't focus on the outward appearance too much; it is only a tent for our spirits to dwell in. My response to that: I would love my tent to be beautiful!

One day it dawned on me that I was starting to sound like the evil stepmother in Snow White, asking everyone including the mirror: Who is the most beautiful woman in the world! And we all know the end to that story. So, I had to renew my mind according to the Word.

Prov 31:30 says:

Charm ( attractiveness that casts a spell, appeal, attraction, magnetism) and grace ( style, beauty of movement, form) are deceptive (lead into error, cause to believe what is false, disbelieve what is true, mislead) and beauty is vain (unfruitful, unproductive, ineffective, futile) but a woman who fears (takes serious their responsibility towards God and respects what He says), will be praised (admired, honoured, go into raptures over)

The truth of who we are can sometimes be hidden by outer appearances that may look more captivating and important. The world loves charm and grace. Most romantic comedies usually feature a beautiful woman exercising her mysterious mesmerising power over a gorgeous guy. But they neglect to mention that this power of form and appeal will always lead others to either believe what is false or disbelieve what is true. Charm and grace have deceptive power.

Pause and think about the following.....

How many times do you believe that you won't find love because you don't look like a Hollywood actress? (Pause and think)
Or how often do you believe that you are not worthy of your husband's faithfulness because you do not captivate him the way another woman does? (Pause and think)
How seldom do you compare yourself with a more gracious and charming woman, thinking you are less attractive, less valuable and less desirable? (Pause and think)
Do you sometimes shy away when meeting a sexy and beautiful woman, thinking you are not qualified to be her friend? (Pause and think)
Or how many times do you withdraw from a conversation thinking you are not as talented or interesting compared to another more attractive woman? (Pause and think)
Do you sometimes think... "why bother looking beautiful".....it won't make a difference anyway? (Pause and think)

These messages we get from charm and grace usually misleads us to believe something false about who God made us to be. A woman with a sexy body and a Marilyn Monroe mystery can sometimes cause us to not see ourselves through the eyes of truth.

The opposite also happens....

Do you sometimes struggle to believe your husband's words of love and adoration, because you do not think it's true? (Pause and think)
Do you sometimes disregard the testimony of married women when they say they only trusted God for their husbands, because you think it won't happen to you? You do not feel beautiful enough? (Pause and think)
Do you often ignore compliments, because you think people are lying? (Pause and think)
Do you often doubt that God has a specific calling and specific purpose for your life, because you are not captivating and charming like someone you know? (Pause and think)
Or how many times do you think that you should only mix with the rich and influential, because God must have his favourites based on looks, and therefore you only mix with the "in" crowd. (Pause and think)
Or do you sometimes disbelieve that God can love you without any expectations. Don't you often feel like you should do something from your side, like go for a make-over or buy a new dress for God to answer your prayers and give you your heart's desires? (Pause and think)

Charm and grace misleads us to disbelieve the truth about how God feels about us. We often build a wall around us, shielding us from messages of truth, because it's much easier to believe the lie.

There is no lasting power in beauty. It will fade, and therefore we cannot construct a true perception around it. Beauty is ineffective and unfruitful. Even men who have committed adultery will testify to this. If we want to be honoured, admired, respected and celebrated, we cannot look to charm and grace to provide us with messages of truth. Beauty is vain. Charm and grace are deceptive

Our value should be determined by the revelations we get from a living relationship with God. We should respect what God says about us. There is great influence in knowing that we are worth the blood of Jesus Christ, and that we are seated in heavenly places. A sense of authority and respect for God's work in our lives should motivate us to believe the best about ourselves, to look after ourselves and to reflect the gospel through who we are.

How we look should not celebrate charm and grace, but value.

Our value must be reflected in how we walk, in what we wear and what we say. We are daughters of Christ, princesses in the Kingdom of God. The worth of anything is dependent on how much someone is willing to pay for it, and how much someone will sacrifice to keep it. God the Father gave ALL He had, to pay the true price of our worth, and to keep us connected to Him. And He daily gives everything we need to reaffirm His love for us. Our value is determined by the sacrifice that was made to save us, and we were paid with the highest price in Heaven and on Earth, the death of Jesus Christ, God's only Son. Angels stand in awe; creation waits for the revealing of the daughters of God with trembling, because they know how precious we are in God's eyes. In the Spiritual realm there is a sense of wonder of what God did for us, because all principalities and powers know - God chose us. We are worth God's love, God's blessings, God's favour and God's heart. We are surrounded by God's goodness toward us.

Do you believe it?

Do you believe that you are precious? Do you believe that God orchestrated everything 2000 years ago to love you forever? Do you believe that you carry the opinion of God in your life, and that it's more costly than beauty? Do you believe in the power of God's words over your life, the power of the value He places on you?

Believe the truth of His Word!

Roll out the red carpet.......call the paparazzi.....let's give the world something to adore, to celebrate, to honour and to be raptured over.....let's give them God's value....let's give them WOW!

Join me today by making a heart's decision that you will never be misled by beauty that will fade, but that you will be led by God's eternal value that will last!

You are beautiful....in every way....(Pause and think)

Laetitia King is a passionate follower of Christ with a passion for women to discover their true identity. Wife, blogger, communication manager and teacher, she loves sharing the Word of God. http://www.awomanofwisdom.blogspot.com

Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com-CHRISTIAN WRITER-MAKE A WEBSITE

An excerpt form George Washington's Christian Journal

Making a journal for me is time-consuming and tasking. I never kept one literally. Somehow the excerpt below changed my mind completely.

"Almighty God, and most merciful father, who didst command the children of Israel to offer a daily sacrifice to thee, that thereby they might glorify and praise thee for thy protection both night and day, receive, O Lord, my morning sacrifice which I now offer up to thee; I yield thee humble and hearty thanks that thou has preserved me from the danger of the night past, and brought me to the light of the day, and the comforts thereof, a day which is consecrated not thine own service and for thine own honor. Let my heart, therefore, Gracious God, be so affected with the glory and majesty of it, that I may not do mine own works, but wait on thee, and discharge those weighty duties thou requirest of me, and since thou art a God of pure eyes, and wilt be sanctified in all who draw near unto thee, who doest not regard the sacrifice of fools, nor hear sinners who tread in thy courts, pardon, I beseech thee, my sins, remove them from thy presence, as far as the east is from the west, and accept of me for the merits of thy son Jesus Christ, that when I come into thy temple, and compass thine altar, my prayers may come before thee as incense; and as thou wouldst hear me calling upon thee in my prayers, so give me grace to hear thee calling on me in thy word, that it may be wisdom, righteousness, reconciliation and peace to the saving of the soul in the day of the Lord Jesus. Grant that I may hear it with reverence, receive it with meekness, mingle it with faith, and that it may accomplish in me, Gracious God, the good work for which thou has sent it. Bless my family, kindred, friends and country, be our God  guide this day and for ever for his sake, who lay down in the Grave and arose again for us, Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen."

This was taken from a book called George Washington, the Christian (New York: The Abingdon Press, New York & Cincinnati, 1919), pp. 24-35 by William J. Johnson.

I stumbled into it while writing an article about Christian journals. This made me wonder how many  great men have one and how they use it during the time of despair. It is a wise idea in my opinion. Evidently we all need a guide especially in the time of desperation. Maybe I should start one soon but how?

This guide is very helpful.

How to Write Notes in a Journal for Personal Bible Quiet Times

God Calling, Would You Pick Up?

"And I would give up forever to touch you, cause I know that you feel me somehow..."

Oh my gosh that is my ringtone but where is my cellphone?

It is in my room. Somewhere in my bed. I have to turn the whole thing upside down just to find it. One by one I took out the pillows, pulled out the sheet but no it was not there. The ringing continued. It must be important so I crawled down the bed with a flashlight on my mouth. Eureka. There it is. I answered it immediately but it was a wrong number. This made me ask myself, "if it was God calling, would I make the same effort?"

God sends us messages everyday. He sends us angels, gives us blessings and even provides us opportunities to attain our dreams but we are too busy to listen. We would rather mingle with friends, spend time online and even party all night than to sit down and pray. Yet still He never grew tired of doing it over and over again. Sadly we never fail to ignore it.

God does not have a land line number but we can talk to Him through prayers. He does not have a Facebook account but we can visit Him at church. He does not like to leave messages on answering machines but we can always read His words through the Bible. The question would be: would you ever do it?

Let us be realistic. Without the Creator, we would have not existed. His great love for us often saved us from total destruction. It is right to give Him the same attention as we give our friends or love ones. Take an hour or two a day to do this. He deserves your company.

The day that God sent me the Phoenix

There came a point in my life that I almost gave up completely. I had three mouths to feed, almost jobless and totally wrecked. I was clueless of where I was heading. The nightmare was over but its consequences were painful. I knew I have to bounce back but how? I was like a fugitive back then. Hiding from those discriminating eyes of my family and my neighbors. I hardly can get out of the house. I was so afraid of being questioned and persecuted. It was like Armageddon for me. Far more different from what I used to be.

I sought comfort in Facebook. Poured my pain on its wall. Cursed the guy a thousand times for ruining my life but that did not help. The pain was still there. I still want to take revenge. I knew it was not healthy but I could not help. I was angry, worried and pretty much upset.  This went on for months until one day this picture caught my eyes:

I do not know what moved me to talk to its owner. It was definitely not my attitude to make the first move but somehow the person behind it made me realized, "Hey there is always room for second chances. So why give up?" True enough God's send angels in the least expected moment. Mine came in Cyberspace where it is easy to hide ones true identity. But this guy, he is simply heaven sent. My total opposite but I certainly love him so much. By the way, he is now my fiance.

The event proved that God do work in wonders. He will let you experience pain to get something better. Time and again He gives you options. It is your choice whether you would like to grab it or not. I have no regrets that things happened the way they should be. He definitely knows what is best for me.

The Lessons of Recycling Trash

Filling the dump site is no longer hip nowadays. Knowing how to recycle, re-purpose and re-use is an advantage especially for the environment. Amazingly some people knows how to reconstruct debris into something more beautiful and useful. Such people remind me of Jesus and Mary Magdalene.

Mary Magdalene was an outcast during her time. She practically knew nothing about love or respect until Jesus saved her from being stoned to death. Men treated her badly and the women condemned her for life. No one dared to ask her why she ever became a prostitute. Some presumed it was all about the money. Others probably thought she liked it but not Jesus. He knew there was something special about this lady. He took her in without question and transformed her into a God-fearing servant.

Just like trash, being an outcast can cause serious damage if one is not treated as a human being. Unfortunately some people just like to push their buttons until they explode. This normally cause them to lose their patience and harm their predators. However it is less likely that someone believes them. Instead of being heard, others would just simply say, "it is your fault" or "you deserve it".

Jesus never came here to judge the outcast. He came to reach out for them and save them from the perils of hell. He used His Words to transform His avid followers. He even died on the cross to reveal the true meaning of  love and happiness. He is a creative Savior. Follow His Command and find another purpose in life. 

So the next time you dump that trash into the bin ask yourself  this question, how do I treat the people around me? What can I do to help them find another purpose with Jesus? 

Jesus In the Gallery and In The Art Room

Translator available  >>

Getting to know God through Arts 

 Every time I look at Michelangelo’s work I could not help but wonder: was God present when he was creating his masterpieces or was it just a pigment of his imagination? We all have our interpretations about the Bible but his art works was simply amazing. You could feel God’s creativity in every stroke of his brush making you feel closer to heaven.

 His marble cravings are also moving. You can tell that he rendered time and effort to form such moving statues. If it could move, you would evidently mistake it for the real thing. No wonder most basilicas in the Renaissance Era commissioned him to carved or paint religious figures on their walls and in their ceiling. Truly he is a classical artist worth admiring.

(Photos courtesy of http://www.wikipedia.com)


 I am not an artist neither am I a big fan of classical arts but I am still astonished of how he manage to let others see that there is a God through his art works. Admittedly it takes extreme talent and passion to form such beauties but I guess faith has something to do with it. Every artist has his forte but his was simply God-sent. Admittedly his masterpieces move me to appreciate the Creator more. I may not read the Bible often but it compels me to believe His existences. It rejuvenates my faith and keeps me moving towards to His embrace. It may not contain words but it tells me to bow down and surrender everything in His hands. This is not easy but it is worth a try. Obviously God is bigger than any problem. So have faith and let Him do His miracles. Remember man can fail but God will never forsake you. How about you? What do you see in these classical masterpieces? Can you feel His presence? If you do, what is His message?