A Beauty Worth Pursuing

Okay, I'll confess...I'm a bit of a Facebook stalker. And I don't feel bad about this because EVERYONE is. Earlier tonight, I was looking through people's photos, which, by the way, 90% of the albums were called "Halloween 09". But I was looking at them and started to feel really disheartened. So many of the pictures were of people getting completely drunk, girls wearing these skimpy outfits that were barely even a costume. At least, I couldn't tell what they were.

And I'm really not trying to be judgmental with this. I hope it's not coming off that way. Because if anything, it's just really heart-breaking for me. There are all these gorgeous girls with wonderful personalities, and they're wasting it all for one night of "fun". I wish I could find every single girl in all of those pictures and tell her how beautiful she is. Tell her how much she is loved by a God who wants so much more for her.

I'm currently re-reading Captivating, a book by John and Stasi Eldredge, and they talk a lot about beauty. It's all over the first two chapters. One quote in particular I really liked is this: "Don't you recognize that a woman yearns to be seen, and to be thought of as captivating? We desire to possess a beauty that is worth pursuing, worth fighting for, a beauty that is core to who we are."

It makes sense to me that girls will dress or act this way. Girls who feel a lacking of love or who have rarely been told they are beautiful or captivating or worth pursuing. It makes sense because I have been blessed with a loving family and group of friends, yet it's something I struggle with every day. I think every single woman in the world does. That desire to be beautiful. To know that someone thinks she is worthy. Every woman wants that; it's just how they choose to get it.

The past few months, I've really struggled with knowing that I'm beautiful. Knowing that I am worthy of being fought for. But the past couple weeks, I realized it's because I cannot find that worth in a guy or anything else; it can only be found in the Lord. The ultimate pursuer. The only knight in shining armor. He is our Savior and He is enthralled by our beauty.

It's tough to believe that sometimes. There are so many things and people in this world constantly telling us we aren't beautiful. But WE ARE. The creator of the universe, the maker of the oceans, waterfalls, forests, flowers, mountains, and butterflies is enthralled by how beautiful we are. That is good news.

And hopefully by the time Halloween 2010 comes around, more and more girls will have heard that message.