By Taffi Dollar
Being a woman in our
current society is tough. TV shows, magazines, movies, and other media
outlets attempt to convince women to measure themselves according to
society's standards. However, doing so limits the beauty of a woman.
According to the world, you have to be a certain size, height, skin
tone, and have a certain type of hairstyle and wardrobe to be considered
beautiful. What does a woman do to uphold her self-image in a world
where advertisements are flooded with influences that promote worldly
beauty? This is where she draws the line by refusing to conform to
society's image of beauty and renews her mind with the Word of God.
Due to impossible worldly standards, countless women have developed a
poor self-image. Fear of not measuring up has caused them to develop
harmful habits to prove their beauty and self-worth. For example, some
women may spend all their money trying to keep up with the latest styles
in beauty and fashion, and nearly starve themselves just to be thin.
However, this type of behavior almost always leads to self-destruction.
Women who have problems with their self-image are often bitter,
angry, and have a bad attitude. When a woman doesn't know how to respect
herself, she will most likely mistreat others. As Christians, we are
taught to love our neighbors as ourselves. However, if you have never
learned to love yourself, you cannot possibly love anyone else.
Proverbs 31 is an excellent guide for all women, because this woman
does not suffer from a poor self-image. Interestingly, the proverb does
not describe this woman's physical appearance, yet by her works we see
her beauty radiating from within. I am not saying run yourself into the
ground trying to do everything this woman did! However, take note of how
she lived her life and became a woman who was celebrated above all
women. She was a woman of elegance and extraordinary intelligence
because she honored God.
Proverbs 31:10 says the price of a virtuous woman is far above
rubies. She is rare, precious, and esteemed above treasured jewels. As a
woman, you have to understand your worth according to God's Word. You
can be the woman you have always wanted to be when you begin to see
yourself as God sees you.
Make a quality decision to define your standards of beauty by God’s
standards found in His written Word. When your self-confidence comes as a
result of a personal relationship with God, you will realize that you
are loved, precious, and
