TRUE BEAUTY

Yesterday I witnessed one of the most anticipated events for a high school girl, the prom. Actually their preparation for this extravagant event started weeks or perhaps even months ago. Their goal was simple, to look their absolute best, to be beautiful. The time and effort they put into planning their “look” paid off.  It was if I was witnessing a red carpet event as I watched the young ladies enter with their flawless hair and make-up, extravagant gowns, and gorgeous shoes. Even the young men were quite handsome in their formal attire, coordinated to match their dates’.

Along with my co-workers, I had a front row seat as the students made their grand entrance. Some of them we were so shocked to see their transformation from the typical teen get-up of jeans, t-shirt and casual shoes to sequins, full make-up and fancy heels. I even commented to a few of my students how well they “cleaned up”. I can only imagine how much money their parents spent for them to achieve this level of beauty.

As I sat there fulfilling one of my teacher duties, chaperoning the Junior/Senior Prom I couldn’t help but think about what would happen if as much effort was put into developing their inner beauty as they did to guarantee that their outward appearance was picture perfect. I wish I could say that the students I saw had an attitude to match the extravagant look they displayed for the prom, but sadly enough for a lot of them it was two extremes. The same kids I saw looking like a million dollars were some of the ones who had bad attitudes, were often class disruptions, had poor grades, and the list goes on. Oh that their character could match how they looked last night. A lot of them are about to go out into the “real world” and they will take those not-so-good character traits with them, and to me it is sad. Unfortunately, these teen/young adults are not the only ones in this predicament. There are adults that do the same thing. They look good on the outside; every hair in place, fashionable outfits, and perfectly coordinated accessories, but they will curse you out, lie to you and on you, and say things to destroy others. This is definitely not a good way to represent yourself or the body of Christ.

Not that I think that the outward appearance isn’t important, but I do think that the inward appearance is more important. I think we neglect the most important thing, character. I think it is far more beautiful to have a person with excellent character than it is with a flawless look. We have got to re-focus our efforts. It is time to get make-overs, but not on the outside, on the inside. It is then and only then will true beauty be achieved.

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But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7