Finding the Beauty Within
What if you never lose the weight, get the boo, land the dream job? Does your worth plummet or do you dig deeper to know that your worth is priceless and it can only be found by discovering the precious, beautiful, treasure that lies within you?
The year 2017 was rough, REALLY rough. It had nothing to do with outside sources but had everything to do with how I thought of myself. I was on the verge to moving forward in purpose but there were some unresolved issues that needed some sorting out. It was me. I needed to be sorted out. How I thought of myself, how I treated myself, basically how I valued myself. After many tears, sleepless nights, and fervent prayers I felt a break. Not a break that would hurt, but a break of chains and bondage of the mind and spirit.
The year 2018 rolled around and I heard three words from the Lord. “It is finished”. The cycle that I went through year after year of heartache, fear, the emotional rides and rollercoasters were finished. Whatever trials and tribulations I went through accomplished what it set out to do. It strengthened me.
And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. -1 Peter 5:10
Shortly after hearing these words, I saw myself differently in the mirror. I looked absolutely beautiful! Did I lose a huge amount of weight? No, but it felt like I did. Do I have a special someone in my life? No. Did I come into a large amount of money? No. Did I land a huge promotion at work? No. Nothing changed but everything changed. The way I viewed myself changed. I finally saw how God saw me and oh was it a prize that was won! The way I viewed myself catapulted a chain reaction of events. I finished an assignment, I answered God’s call, but above all, I became head over heels in love with Ralinda.
I looked in this mirror at this woman that never saw her beauty until that moment. She looked powerful, courageous, strong, relentless, a classic beauty unable to be altered by others thoughts or actions. This woman had God given options unlike the woman in 2017 and latter years that allowed her low self-esteem to allow the devil to only provide her with one option. Which was to settle for anything that was given to her, settle for anything that tolerated her, even if it was trash. This new woman in the mirror found joy in her God given options and for the first time found that she was worthy of these exciting choices and decisions she will soon make on her road to destiny. To know that I no longer felt stuck due to the low self esteem I suffered, but now free because the beauty I found within was like taking my first breath of fresh air after coming out of a dark enclosed cave.
Ralinda found the beauty in Ralinda without losing weight, having a man, or a lot of money. Yes, I would love to have and accomplish these things, but to start off with knowing how worthy you are, how precious you are, how royal you are, how beautiful you are, is the quintessential part of life. The quintessential part on the road to greatness and the quintessential part of being whole in Jesus. That is the beauty within us all.
Original Post Date: April 2, 2018 via: Virtuous3.com