Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Catching up on Devotionals Sun-Tues

Would you consider cosmetic surgery to fix something about your appearance?
I actually had sclerotherapy a few years back. It was to reduce the many spider veins in my calves. To me they just looked horrible. I remember the Dr reminding me that this would only be a temporary fix. Eventually they would come back and the procedure would be required again. I wasn't concerned about later, I wanted them gone now. As I look back on this procedure I'm reminded that it was all about the outside appearance of my legs at the time....and as I write this and look down at my calves...it's just like she said...the results were only temporary.

Why do you think we women struggle to find true contentment? My grandmother had this saying that "You should be happy with what you have, or else you'll never be satisfied with what you get." Reading Genesis 1:26, we were created in the image of God. How awesome is that. I think it's human nature to want what we can't have. For those of us who are perfectionist we see everything through "less than" colored glasses. We are always wanting to improve something.

Funny Thought: Well my husband often has words of wisdom that just come out of the blue. One day I was talking to him about how much night-time face moisturizer cost. I stated that wrinkle cream costs are out of sight and who knows which one to use...there are only about 1000 to choose from on the shelf. (HINT) Don't take a young child with you when picking out skin care creams it will take you at least 30 mins easily to peruse through the ingredients list on any given item. As my husband listened intently, he said something that was profound. "All of these wrinkle creams guarantee that they will get rid of them. But lets be real, wrinkles happen to us all and there isn't any cream on the market that can stop the normal aging process. We are ALL going to grow OLD and get WRINKLES."

Whom do you seek approval from? I think when I was younger, probably my parents. Then it was probably my boss or other co-workers. I also sought approval from my husband. I think silently that I look to the world and it's standards too. I look for what's trendy and in style. But if God is my creator then why am I not concerned with His approval? If I am the daughter of the King, do I show it to others are am I just covering it up?

2 Corinthians 3:18 And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

I realize that it is a process, a journey on which I am ever traveling with my Lord and Savior. My grandmother is 84 years old and is one of the most beautiful women I know (wrinkles and all). It is her heart for God that makes her beautiful. If we allow God to enter our hearts he will transform us. He will transform us from the inside out. There is a song that I love and here are the words:

Change Me on The Inside
Vineyard Music Brian Doerkson
I long for freedom to live in the truth
I want to be more like you
But every time I bring about change
I only touch the visible me

Its the visible me that I need work on. It will come when I allow Christ to continue his work inside me. And these results won't be temporary...they will be life-long lasting. I want to challenge you to try and reflect Him in everything you do this week.

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