Beautiful Dresses
One morning, I was helping my young daughter get ready for church. When she put on her dress, I could see a change come over her. It was a very beautiful dress that had been a gift to her. It was one of those long flowing dresses that makes a young girl feel like a princess as soon as she slips it on. That’s exactly what happened to my daughter. As soon as the dress slipped over her head and cascaded to the floor, I saw her begin to smile. After I helped her button up the back of the dress and tie the ribbon at her waist, she did what every young girl in that kind of dress does. She spun in a circle so she could watch the dress swirl around her. I smiled with her and told her how beautiful she looked.
Yes, I know that I am biased and partial, but I thought she looked like an angel in her new dress. After church, she took it off so that she could eat her lunch. I couldn’t help but smile when I saw her wearing it once again a short while later. She really liked the dress and felt beautiful in it. I debated on trying to explain to her that she was beautiful and would be just as beautiful in a potato sack, but I didn’t. I knew she wouldn’t believe me. I also knew the power of a beautiful dress. When a girl, or a grown woman for that matter, slips into a beautiful dress she feels beautiful; she feels special. There is just something about a beautiful gown that changes the way a girl feels about herself.
We all know the feeling. We’ve all slipped into a dress and couldn’t help but take a little spin just to watch it swirl around us. We know what it’s like to have those moments where we felt special, where we felt beautiful. Most of us have had at least one moment where the right clothes made us feel more beautiful than normal. However, if you are anything like me, you don’t feel that way very often. In fact, if I were to be brutally honest with you, I would admit that most days, it is rare for me to feel that special and that beautiful. As I watched the joy on my daughter’s face, I thought to myself, “maybe I need a dress like that so that I will feel like that again”.
As I watched my daughter play in her dress that afternoon, God began to speak to my heart. It started as a whisper while I was watching her sway in her dress. Ever so gently, He began to remind me that He had already given me the most beautiful gown I will ever own. “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness as a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels” Isaiah 61:10. God has given me the most beautiful white robe of Christ’s righteousness and I wear it daily.
If that doesn’t make me feel beautiful then I don’t know what will. God patiently reminded me that when I slipped on that beautiful and priceless robe of righteousness, He looked at me the same way I looked at my young daughter. He looked at me with a heart full of love and saw beauty. And He still sees me that way. I can’t seem to wrap my mind around that, but it is true. He sees me wrapped in that white robe and He sees me as beautiful. How I wish I could see myself the way He does. I have believed satan’s lies for so long that it is sometimes hard to believe that God truly thinks I am beautiful. It is hard to believe that He sees me the same way I see my baby girl.
I look at my precious child and my heart fills with love. I think she is one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. I don’t mean to sound prideful. I think most parents love their children and think they are the most beautiful things they have ever seen. And you know what? I think we’re all right. But the point I want us to get here is this. God’s love is so much stronger than the love we feel for our children. What we feel for them is just a drop in the bucket compared to how He feels about us. The love I feel towards my children is just a fraction of the love He feels for me. The beauty I see in my children is just a shadow of the beauty He sees in me.
I’ll be honest enough to admit I don’t feel that way. I have to work hard at reminding myself that feelings lie, and God’s Word does not. God’s Word says that He thinks I am beautiful (Psalm 149:4). In fact, Song of Solomon 4:7 takes it a step further and says, “You are altogether beautiful, my darling; there is no flaw in you.” Now when I stand in front of the mirror, I don’t feel beautiful; I don’t feel flawless. In fact, I am quite good at seeing all of my flaws and imperfections. But what God pointed out to me is that it is time to choose to believe what He says about me instead of what my feelings are telling me. I must learn to believe truth.
Every single day, our enemy tries to get us to believe lies over the truth of God’s Word. Maybe the lies he whispers to you are different from the lies he whispers to me. Maybe they are the same. Whatever they are, it is our job to recognize them for what they are and choose to believe truth. When the thoughts going through our head do not line up with the truth of God’s Word, we must recognize them for the lies that they are and refuse to accept them. Every time a thought comes into our mind, we must stop it there at the threshold and evaluate it. We must run it through the test of Philippians 4:8 and see if it lines up with the Word of God.
2 Corinthians 10:4-5 says, “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds and casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” We must choose to take control of our thoughts when we see they are headed down the wrong path. We must learn to stop and choose truth. For years now, I have been writing down Scriptures to help combat the lies and thoughts I struggle with. I am tired of satan’s lies. I am tired of giving him any ground in my life. I want to believe truth. I want to see myself the way God sees me.
Every girl wants to feel beautiful but how many of us realize that we already are? My sweet sister, how do you see yourself today? Do you judge yourself according to the world’s standards of beauty or do you see yourself the way God sees you? I have a confession to make. Lately I have found myself looking around at the women in my life and I have been amazed at the beauty I have seen. I look around and I see God’s handiwork and I am amazed at how beautiful these women are. The most amazing thing is that most of them have absolutely no clue how beautiful they are. There is a young girl at my church who has such a beautiful smile that she just makes you feel better when she smiles at you.
There is a woman I know who just glows with a beauty that says she spends time with Jesus. There is another lady I know who has the most beautiful and contagious smile. I’ve seen wrinkles around gorgeous eyes that say that woman has laughed and enjoyed life. I’ve seen eyes that twinkle with a love for the people around her. I’ve seen a sweet flush of pink painted across a beautiful face. I’ve seen freckles sprinkled on adorable noses. I’ve seen wild curls that make me smile. I look around me and I see shades of many colors and I can’t help but admire the Artist’s work. God sure is an amazing Creator and He has done an amazing job with the women in my life.
As I look around at all these beautiful faces, I can’t help but wonder if they know how beautiful they are or if like me, they struggle with the lies when they look into the mirror. Do they have a clue how beautiful they are? Do they realize that they are one of a kind, priceless, masterpiece? May I share a secret with you? You are one of the women I am talking about. Yes, you my friend! I am talking about you. You are one of the beautiful masterpieces I have been talking about. That little whisper you just heard saying I couldn’t be talking about you…that’s one of those lies we’ve been talking about. Tell it to get lost. Tell it to go straight back to the pits of hell where it came from.
In fact, you have my permission to tell all the lies, all the untrue things you have believed to go straight to hell. That sounds shocking, doesn’t it? But you must remember, that is exactly where they originated from, dear heart, and you are simply sending them back home. Every whisper, every lie that does not line up with what God says about you is from the enemy. I think it is time to send them all back to where they came from and choose to believe truth. I think it’s time to get up and dance around in that white robe of righteousness that you are wearing and watch it float around you. I think it’s time to look in the mirror and smile as you tell yourself the truth. I am loved. God thinks I am beautiful.
I don’t know about you, but I have believed the lies for far too long. It’s exhausting and I am tired of it. I want to believe what God says about me, so with His help I am going to keep pressing on and keep fighting. I am going to keep choosing truth. I am going to keep replacing the lies. If it takes the rest of my life, may the last words I speak be His Words, His truth. May I seek His face and dig so deeply into His Word that I am completely transformed by the “renewing of my mind” (Romans 12:1-2). And when I get tired, when I am tempted to believe the lies, I’m going to close my eyes and visualize myself in that gorgeous white robe He has given me and keep pushing on. I hope you will do the same.
I will praise You for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my souls knows very well. Psalm 139:14
How lovely is Your dwelling place, Lord Almighty! Psalm 84:1
Grace and peace,
Katrina Douglas
