Hey, you! Yes, you there, trying to hide your face behind all that make-up and your body under those perfect clothes. I see you and you are beautiful.
Without all of it.
You are beautiful before you put on the right outfit.
You are beautiful before you do anything to your hair.
You are beautiful before you wake-up and before the make-up.
Now, don’t go there. Stop thinking, “No, No, No, I’m not beautiful…”. You are so amazing. How can you so easily tell this to other people, but still can’t believe it about yourself?
If I could wish for anything in the world, it would be for you to believe you are valuable, loved, and beautiful. If you believed that, you would fly.
You are beautiful, even if this is the first time you have been told so.
You are beautiful, even when you have been told you could never be.
You are beautiful, even if you don’t believe me.
I wonder what would happen if you did believe me. What would happen if you truly loved how God made you? What if you loved your personality, loved your body, loved everything?
Can you imagine…
You would walk confidently everywhere you went.
You would be happy to be you.
You would be a hero.
You would be fearless.
I want that for you. I want you to be secure in who you are, not insecure. You see, insecurity is another way of saying you do not feel safe to be yourself. It is having no inward satisfaction, hiding your authentic-self from others, all the while, desiring to be a person you are not.
Insecurity begins with comparison. You notice people, how they behave, how they dress, what they say, and you rate yourself against them. This makes you wish you were better or at least
more beautiful
more talented
more athletic
more sexy
stronger
smarter
thinner
shorter
wider
richer
taller
wiser
nicer
“It is hopeless!”, you think. Everyone is much more confident and beautiful than you. Sub-consciously you believe this to be a fact and you physically respond by slouching, avoiding eye-contact, and trying not to get noticed.
Until one day, you decide to take action.
What is your solution? You try everything you can to improve yourself and appear confident. You want to belong. You put on the armor of temporary beauty, because that is what makes you feel safe. You get your nails done, work hard to style your hair, fix your eyebrows to the perfect arch, wear all the right clothes for your body-type, workout at the gym and apply as much make-up as you need to feel good about yourself.
And for a while you do feel good about yourself.
Until, you hear your new boyfriend make a negative comment about his looks, and trying to cheer him up you say, “Oh, you should see ME without make-up!” He laughs, but you suddenly realize the joke is on him. Would he still like you if he did see you without make-up? Without any of the armor? If he saw the real you?
Years pass, and most people would never guess you had insecurities, because you have learned to hide it well. Only you know the truth. The moment the layers are off, you are alone with yourself, and can hide no longer. You grudgingly look into the mirror at your reflection, and you brace yourself because the woman standing there staring back at you, she never lies.
She looks disgusted.
Though you have worked hard to look great, she stares at the flaws, the imperfections, the places that still need improvement. She pinches, grabs, pokes, and stabs. Then her face falls solemnly and she walks away. Exhausted by the disappointment. You cannot remember the last time she was happy to see you.
Insecurity is a battle. It is a war. It began with you, it is fought by you, and it will end with you. It is time for you to rise up and win this war.
Today, bless your body. Thank God for who you are. Celebrate YOU.
Every time you criticize anything about yourself, you judge the artist’s work, and remember, God never makes mistakes. You are made excellently.
I pray you would love yourself as Christ loves you.
I pray you would feel happy in your own skin.
I pray you would play with your hair because you love it.
I pray you would look in the mirror and have a smile every time you saw yourself.
I pray you would feel free to be you.
I pray you would never fight that war again.
I pray you would believe me when I say…
You are truly beautiful.
With Love,
Katya