Air Brushed Beauty

Flipping through a magazine last night, I was once again reminded of why I am so insecure at times. Every woman was perfect. They had perfect skin, perfect hair, perfect eyes, perfect body, perfect tans and perfect make-up. Even the women who had supposedly just gotten out of the shower looked like they had a fresh coat of perfection sprayed on them. Can a woman really be that perfect? They make it look so easy.

I don’t know about you, but photographs never seem to capture me as the person I see in the mirror. I am always fatter, with three chins showing rather than two. One eye may be squinted. And of course, that zit that I only get once a year…shines like Rudolph’s nose. How can these women have such flawless bodies? They must be towers of confidence.

As I started thinking about all this perfection, I was reminded of an episode of Tyra Banks I watched one day. I found it interesting because I was taking a class in Photoshop and was learning how amazing an airbrush was in photography. I had been having fun turning photos of my less than perfect friends into flawless figures. Tyra had taken a picture from one of her ad campaigns and blown it up for the audience to see. She looked amazing… perfect skin, perfect hair, perfect body, etc. Then she told the audience how important it was for the young girls not to compare themselves with that image.

Why in the world would she do that? Because, that perfect image had been touched by a master in Photoshop. She showed her REAL picture and the audience gasped! Her booty was about 5 inches bigger than the touched up photo. Her hair wasn’t nearly as shiny; and the blemishes on her face were extremely apparent.

As I have read my bible over the past couple of years God has made it personal to me. Every time I read the word “Zion,” it is like God calls me by name his “baby girl.” Psalm 50:2 says, “From Zion (from my baby girls), perfect in beauty, God shines forth.

Isn’t it great to think God sees us as perfect in beauty? He made us, why shouldn’t He? You’ve heard the adage, “God don’t make junk!” Well that is true with His daughters. When we give the flawed photos of our lives, the imperfect relationships, the messed up choices, the scars of life…when we hand those over to the Master; he can do an airbrushing on our lives like no one else. He may not take 5 inches off our booty, but he ads value to ever aspect of our lives. He shines through our imperfections to make us beautiful!

Real beauty comes when we allow God to shine forth in our lives. Start looking through the pages of your life and see how He has turned you in to an object of beauty.