By Rhonda Stinson
“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”
As of late, I have noticed signs of aging. My skin is now wrinkling, my bones hurt, my muscles ache, and my eyes are dimming. It’s hard to watch the effects of time degrade our fleshly human bodies.
I’ve never been a make-up wearer. Every once in a while, I put on eyeliner or lip gloss, but I don’t mind just going natural. Same with hair. I’m probably the only woman over 40 who has never dyed her hair. I figure it’s the color God gave me, so it’s the color that best compliments my skin and other features. Let me just say, when my hair starts to turn gray, I will probably go hair dye crazy. That will be the time to try all of the fun colors and techniques I’ve never tried.
My mom has wanted to let her hair grow out gray for a couple of years. Dad told her to go ahead and do it. I, on the other hand, told her that it will age her 10 years. She finally made the decision this year to dive into the au naturale and, I must confess, it is becoming on her! The revealing of age becomes more desirable than the toil and time put into a cover-up when you reach a certain age. It is amazing to see the wonder of art on the face and hair. There are many things that we can do to enhance our appearance and there is nothing wrong with that. There is beauty in creativity and design. The problem arises when we use our appearance or anything else as a cover-up for who we truly are. The deepest beauty we have comes from the Creator. God painted each detail of your very being. From the ski jump nose to the bowed legs to the pear-shaped body, God created it and, therefore it is good and perfect. The most beautiful people in the world are those who glorify God with their bodies and their heart. They allow themselves to be transparent in weaknesses and humble in works so that they exemplify Christ-likeness.
“For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in the mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does” (James 1:23-25 ESV).
As I look at the world around me, I see lust for youth. Olay, Gold Bond, and Neutrogena attempt to bring in some bucks as they line the shelves with retinol creams. One can even go for the needle and get a shot of Botox to iron out those dreaded wrinkles. Sounds simple enough, but has anyone ever “youthenized” themselves through temporary treatments such as these? No way! Time is always in forward motion and there is no reverse. It is hard to see the wrinkles and sags that seem to appear overnight. I don’t even like to look at pictures of myself from years past. It brings me to a point of realization that this body is not made for this world. Here’s where the light pierces through; we were made for more than this world. This body is simply the vehicle God created for us to do the work He created us to do. Every Christian is part of God’s royal court. I am a daughter of the King of Kings! I am of the royal lineage of Jesus Christ! My sisters in Christ, YOU are called to a royal position. “And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this”(Esther 4:14b)?
Mary was a very young woman when she was told she would bear Emmanuel. She showed inner beauty throughout her life and God saw her devotion and blessed her with the Child that would become the Sacrificial Lamb. At the other end of the timeline is Anna, a prophetess. She was “of a great age”. She was at least 84 years old, but she was a woman who gives us all inspiration. Her husband died, leaving her a childless widow, but this did not hinder her from serving God with her whole being. “…who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day” (Luke 2:37). These women held special positions because they were devoted to God. It had nothing to do with their mental or physical abilities. The most taxing physical jobs require youth, but God has no limitations as to who He chooses to do His work. As a matter of fact, God’s glory is illuminated through those who are weak and broken. God does not call the qualified; He qualifies the called. “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians. 2:10).
Even if you’re as cute and wrinkly as a Shar-Pei or as silver as your dinnerware, you are at a point in time that is as important now as it was when you were youthful. The young ones being born in our world today need the guidance of older Christians. Your steps are legendary and will be followed by someone at some point in time. Will those steps point others to Christ or lead them astray? The world is an evil place and those who are alive in Christ look to that future time when there will be no time, no aging, no watches, no calendars and no death. The time is drawing near when these old bodies will become new.
“Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. For we live by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So we make it our goal to please Him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:6-10).
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