Dear Aspiring Beauty Queens,

Step right up and have a seat at the make-up counter (aka, the altar). Relax. Inhale. Now close your eyes and take a good look into the mirror of your soul. Do you like what you see?  Sometimes the shoddy situations of life cause us to see ourselves thru a magnifying mirror, with minor imperfections appearing majorly enlarged. Our perception of self is distorted. And so we become cover girls. Our beauty is skin deep… as deep as our ability to mask tear-stained faces and outfit the skeletons in our closets with churchy couture. But regardless of your unsightly past, the traumatic experiences that have beaten your self-esteem black and blue, or the sinful scars that challenge your spiritual growth, a marvelous make-over is awaiting you! Hey, why just look the part when you can be the part?! All you have to do is make up your mind to be the beautiful woman of God you were created to be.

To become a Beauty Queen in Christ, you must make up your mind to:

1.  Submit to Surgery (Salvation)- If you’ve never accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, your make-over has to start with a Spiritual Face Lift. Trust me, you need it as bad as I did.  Sin is ugly and disfiguring. It contributes to premature aging- leaving an unsightly rash of spots and wrinkles, forcing you to cringe at your own reflection. It must be done away with.  Here’s the Good News: accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior will redefine your spiritual anatomy. Jesus is the real deal and a dynamite physician. He loves you so much, He went ahead and paid for your entire procedure! It won’t hurt, there’s no down time and the results are lifetime guaranteed. This isn’t plastic surgery, it’s fantastic surgery! AND, you won’t even be ashamed to tell folks you had some work done. Girlfriend, if you haven’t done so already, I highly recommend you run to Jesus for your spiritual facelift. Get your fresh start today! Take it from me- you’ll love the results… they’re perfect!

2. Flush Your Face (Repentance)- You were fearfully and wonderfully made but you’ll never see it for yourself until you wash away the filth that litters your life. Just as you should wash your face a couple of times a day to remove the built-up dirt, you must also cleanse your spirit of sin through repentance. Do it as often as necessary. For a deeper clean, don’t be afraid to engage in a spiritual exfoliation (fast) every now and then. This will aid in your spirit’s rejuvenation process by ridding your system of the pore-clogging impurities that have  caused chaos to break out in your life. Gotta keep that new spirit fresh and clean!

3. Slather on the SPF Moisturizer (Holy Spirit… the ultimate Sin Protection Factor)- The purpose of moisturizer is to reinforce your natural skin barrier. Regular use of moisturizer lessens the occurrence of dry, rough, scaly, itchy skin and minor skin irritations. Likewise, submitting to the Holy Spirit will keep you aligned with God and lessens the occurrence of a dry, rough, unproductive spiritual life. And the integrated Sin Protection Factor (SPF) helps to reduce the likelihood of burning in sin and pre-mature aging associated with too much sin exposure.

4. Paint on the Primer (Prayer)- Primer is a makeup and skin care solution used to prepare the skin for foundation, powder and other cosmetics. Face primer has two main purposes: 1) to help achieve a smooth, even complexion,  2) enables makeup to stay on for an extended amount of time for a flawless, long-lasting look. Just like face primer, prayer is necessary to keep you connected to God. Without it, your efforts will be in vain and nothing you apply will stick.

5. Express thru Eyeshadow (Faith)- Tastefully adorning one’s lids with beautiful, bright, bold eyeshadow is an outward expression of inner confidence.  And guess what? Your faith is a visible sign of personal trust and confidence in God. It expresses the depth of your belief. Without faith, it’s impossible to please Him (Hebrews 11:6). The more colorful and elaborate, the more abundant and believable is your faith!  A woman who dwells in the shelter of the Most High, has eyes that are decorated with the shadow of the Almighty. Her faith in God shines brightly. Her trust in Him enables her to walk boldly. Confidently. Her eyes are the windows to her Savior, not the doors of hidden disgust. How do you express your faith? It’s easier to see yourself as the Beauty Queen God created when you express yourself through faith.

6. Affix the Foundation (The Word of God)- You can build a beautiful work of art when the Word is your foundation. More often than not, the average person tries to apply God’s Word to their life without first plugging into their Power Source via the Holy Spirit and prayer (and they wonder why their spiritual foundation is shaky). So be sure to follow steps 2 and 3 prior to attempting to build a solid foundation. Don’t get me wrong- you can read the Bible 24/7… but your level of understanding and effective application won’t be firm until you apply your spiritual Moisturizer and Primer. And once you start applying God’s Word to your pretty little palette, you’ll wonder how you ever survived without it! Meditating on the Word of God and speaking it over your life will help you walk confidently in His unparalleled promises.

7. Consent to Concealer (God’s Grace)- God’s Word often challenges our flesh. It exposes some sins that we would rather keep hidden. But it is the grace of God that enables us to press on in spite of the weight of our sinful past. Just as concealer covers up your physical imperfections, God’s grace covers your personal flaws and blemishes from public embarrassment. The more you spend time in prayer and study His Word, the more you will understand His grace. It’s a gift He gives freely, as an expression of His love for us. Sin can scar one’s spirit with guilt and shame but accepting God’s grace liberates us from the disgrace of that duress. When the King of Kings gives you a priceless gift, don’t argue with His generosity- accept it! Walk in it. Be grateful and sin no more. Oh, and don’t be selfish with it. Your beautification process will be accelerated when you’re a giver of grace, not just a receiver. 😉

8. Brush on the Blush (Humility)- Humility keeps pride from sinking in and enables you to see and acknowledge God at work in your life. It keeps you from becoming so full of yourself that you live a life void of Christ. You can look like Miss Universe but an arrogant, nasty, stank attitude will cause you to more closely resemble Medusa. Ladies, “pride  goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.” (Proverbs 16:18). Nobody looks goods good falling. Nobody.

9. Lay on the Lipstick (Praise and Worship)-  We serve a Mighty God… the King of kings and Lord of lords! Bless (speak well of) His Name at all times. Tell Him how much He means to you. Thank Him for His grace, mercy, and unmerited favor. Worship Him simply because He alone is God. The most beautiful words that will ever grace your lips are the praise and worship of your Lord and Savior.

10. Bask in the Bronzer (Glory of God)- Ahhh… the Glory of God. It shines brightly all around and about those who are in deep, intimate relationship with Him. It gives us that radiant, Son-kissed glow- proof that we’ve spent quality time alone in His presence. Don’t hide the Glory of God in your life! Smile about it! Bask in it. For it is the Glory of God that will attract both strangers and loved ones to lay at the altar of His operating room- to undergo their own spiritual face lift.

Woman of God, you are beautiful, loved, and lovely. You were created as such. Now it’s time to walk in that splendor. Hold your head up high. You are a child of the King! The more you grow spiritually, the more you should look like Him. Make up your mind to be the phenomenal femme you were destined to be. You’ll walk in more confidence (physically and spiritually) when you place more value on your spiritual beauty than your outer appearance (please don’t use this as excuse to let yourself go physically- that’s not cute! LOL). Being beautiful is a lifetime commitment that must be maintained. After undergoing your spiritual surgery, you must apply steps 2-10 on a daily basis. And as an aspiring Beauty Queen, you must also commit to being selective about what you feed your spirit (thru what you watch, eat, listen to, etc.). Be sure to feast on a well-balanced diet of God, Church, Bible Study, and prayer, and steer away from gossip, temptation, foolishness, and ugly conduct. You are what you eat… eat well, not hell. Be a beauty, not a beast. 🙂

Practically Yours,

~The Practical Chick

*Written as a prelude to my May 2012 'REAL WOMEN. REAL TALK.' session.