the "I am beautiful" project

Yikes.

The truth is that just a few years ago you would not have had a hope in heaven of seeing a picture of me holding up a sign that says this....



"I am beautiful."

Uh-uh.  There is no way I would have done it.  You could stand on your head and whistle Dixie until the cows come home, and my answer would still be a "No way!"

Simply because, like 99.99% of woman in the world, I too have struggled with the way I look over the years.  Actually, make that present tense....still struggle. 

I've struggled with my weight over the years.  I look in the mirror and don't particularly like what I see.

I'll be 40 on my next birthday--and there is nothing I can do to keep from getting older.  I notice lines that were never there before.  Sometimes I feel insecure about the way I look.  I've done my fair share of comparing myself to other women.

Know what I mean?



But...

Slowly but surely over the years the Lord has been teaching me--that I cannot find my value, my self-worth, and my security in the world.  I cannot. 

I am beginning to get it.  Ever so slowly.  I no longer see myself the way I did years ago.  I choose to see myself as God sees me.  I choose to believe that I am created in His image...just the way I am.  I choose to believe that, even as I am getting older, a woman can be beautiful at any age, because it's the heart that truly counts.

Having a beautiful heart makes any woman beautiful!

That's what I long for.



My dear friend Jill feels the same way.  God has had her on her own journey to see herself as beautiful. 

Jill has started a campaign on her blog.

It's called "I AM BEAUTIFUL."

Jill is encouraging women like you and me to forget about what the world says, to not strive to be something that you aren't, but to ONLY see yourselves as God sees you....

Beautiful.  Inside and out.

Hand-crafted in the image of a God who does ALL things with excellence.

Unique.

Special.

Treasured.



We're all beautiful.....just the way we are.

With our bumps, our flaws, our wrinkles, and our many imperfections. 

We are beautiful women of a mighty God.  And that should be all we need to know.

But there are times when it is a hard truth to get in our hearts.



So my angels and I just had to get in on Jill's project. 

I wanted the world to see that all five of us are beautiful--even though we could not be more different from each other if we tried.

We're special.



We're unique.



We're "fearfully and wonderfully made."

JUST the way we are.



Jill has started a group where women can join in. 

Gather your young ladies and join in on the I AM BEAUTIFUL project. 

Go here to see other BEAUTIFUL faces and upload your own pictures. 



We live in a world gone crazy.  We're bombarded with advertisements, an unrealistic worldview of what true beauty is, and the ever-present media which tells us that we can be more beautiful, younger looking, more attractive...if we just tried this pill, that lotion, or the next best injection to smooth out wrinkles.

It is so constantly in our faces.

The Bible says that beauty is fleeting.  And it is.



I think that the most beautiful women in the world are the ones who love God with everything they have.  The women who radiate the love of Jesus in everything they do.  I think the most stunning beauties are the women who glow simply because they love freely, unconditionally, and with their whole hearts.

That to me is true beauty.

That is what I want.



We're so blessed to join in on Jill's campaign.  We declare into the heavenlies today that WE ARE BEAUTIFUL!  No matter what the world says about us.

We're His beloved daughters.

 

Be blessed in all you do, sweet friends.  Remember that you ARE beautiful!