God is love, God can empower. What is the greatest commandment : Love the Lord with all your heart, mind and soul and love your neighbor as yourself. Love is the strongest force in this world. He will never leave us or forsake us. When people hurt you or disappoint you remember that you are loved passionately, completely and more abundantly than you could ever imagine by Jesus Christ. You are never alone and will never be alone. He is knocking at the door of your heart, If you haven’t opened your heart to him know he is there patiently waiting, thirsting for your love.
Sometimes we need silence, to sit alone. And sift through the noise of this often dark, noisy and pornified world. Yes, I just said pornified. As a woman the culture and images that are constantly displayed on tv, billboards, internet… you name it, the scantily clad images of what a sexy woman supposedly is, can really have an impact on and affect the pressure we as women place on ourselves. I have been told that I am pretty or attractive, but for a woman to believe that within herself is often times hard.
You see, if we truly looked for beauty in the eyes of the soul how much more character would we have. Imagine the confidence in ourselves, in our souls not in our bodies as objects to be used or devalued as mere visual stimuli. This is a broken world and it takes an effort of real courage and strength on the part of both man and woman to demand more. To hold each other to a higher standard. A standard of grace, respect, dignity and that is where I believe healing will begin. When we begin to place faith in each other again and love one another as brothers and sisters in Christ. Not as an object, with the mindset of what can I get out of you or what pleasure can you bring me.
The only way to truly live and love is to give… to give kindness, to give of oneself in grace, the way Jesus gave all for us. As a woman I am always aware of the pressures of this world, but have found it is far better to stand alone, to walk according to God’s ways, to follow his law than to conform to the world which only brings heartache, confusion and pain.
If you have or are struggling with your value or worth. Always remember you are a child of God, more precious than diamonds. There may be people who come into your life that will never see that, but never doubt your worth. You are worthy of Love.
You are worth everything and more, so much so that God sent his only Son to die on a cross for you. You are set free in Jesus Christ, ask him in prayer to give you the gift to see your own unique God given beauty and to truly know your worth.
Around fifteen years ago I was having a casual conversation with our parish priest and a young woman’s name came up who was a mutual friend and whose marriage was in trouble. I remarked how it was a shame and that she was such a beautiful young woman.
“What do her looks have to do with any of this?” Father J. retorted.
I could say nothing and knew that he had made a profound point to me. For while I had thought that I was above labeling/valuing/seeing someone merely on their outwards appearance, my casual words betrayed me. I still had a long ways to go. I have never forgotten that correction and am a better person because of it.
In his book Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander, Fr. Thomas Merton wrote the following passage after having a similar epiphany in “Louisville, at the corner of Fourth and Walnut, in the center of the shopping district”:
It is a glorious destiny to be a member of the human race, though it is a race dedicated to many absurdities and one which makes many terrible mistakes: yet, with all that, God Himself gloried in becoming a member of the human race. A member of the human race! To think that such a commonplace realization should suddenly seem like news that one holds the winning ticket in a cosmic sweepstake.
I have the immense joy of being man, a member of a race in which God Himself became incarnate. As if the sorrows and stupidities of the human condition could overwhelm me, now that I realize what we all are. And if only everybody could realize this! But it cannot be explained. There is no way of telling people that they are all walking around shining like the sun.
Sure you’re a beautiful woman “physically” and in appearance to the subjective eyes of many. But in reading the words, thoughts, and expressions of your heart it becomes obvious to those with ears that hear that you are a lovely and valuable soul with a beautiful heart. In our superficial world, to see that takes effort and so too many of us (as I used to do) miss out on true beauty and true worth, even as it applies to our very selves. Merton concluded with this:
Then it was as if I suddenly saw the secret beauty of their hearts, the depths of their hearts where neither sin nor desire nor self-knowledge can reach, the core of their reality, the person that each one is in God’s eyes. If only they could all see themselves as they really are. If only we could see each other that way all the time.
I apologize for being so long-winded. Your post struck a chord with me. 🙂
“If only they could all see themselves as they really are. If only we could see each other that way all the time.”
Jeff, your thoughts have struck a cord with me as well. I thank you! Thank you, for your beautiful commentary, You are a gifted writer and the sincerity in which you express your point of view touches my heart. I am now going to find and read the book you mentioned: Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander. Thank you for sharing and above all for being the man of God that you so clearly are. The world needs more men like you.
Sincerely,
Amanda