Beauty is more than skin deep

Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised. 
(Proverbs 31:30 NLT)

I was taking a look of some recent photos of movie actresses as they are now in their seventies or older. They look nothing like what they used to! In fact, those who have chosen to "stay young" by getting all that botox, collagen, and who knows what pumped or implanted into various areas of their bodies look a little bit "morphed" from what they were! Maybe they see this as an improvement over the wrinkles and natural sagging process of older skin, but eegads - it can be scary! Those voluminous lips stand out like nobody's business! The perfectly toned skin is obviously stretched to capacity - it barely moves when they blink, talk, or smile!

Audrey Hepburn once commented about "true beauty". She said, "The beauty of a woman must be seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides." She was so right! Those stars can primp this, puff that, and plump whatever, but their eyes tell a much different story at times! They often betray the true emptiness of their heart - the misery of the years of living in the constant "circle of attention" they have endured. Try as they might, they cannot "mask" the absence of peace, love, and true joy that is only there when one has made Christ the center of their lives.

One of my favorite quotes about beauty comes from musician David Allan Coe: "It is not the beauty of a building you should look at; its the construction of the foundation that will stand the test of time." The foundation is paramount to what is built upon it. A bad foundation creates a less than reliable building! I have a great BFF who isn't afraid to go without make-up or just hang-out on vacation in our baggy sweats or even enduring "hat head" after a long day fishing. We don't have to "put on airs" to be together - we can be real with each other - and I value what has been built upon that foundation of genuine concern for each other's well-being more than anything else in the world. Without it, I don't know where I'd have gone astray!

Beauty is fleeting unless it is built upon a great foundation. No matter how much you try to "apply it", it comes from much deeper. It isn't applied, injected, repaired, or "refreshed" by any substance. It is the result of a right heart, a settled mind, and a restored spirit. Just sayin!

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