"Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious." 1 Peter 3:3-4

"Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised." Proverbs 31:30

Picture THE hugest alligator tears you ever did see streaming down my sweet baby girl’s face. “Momma, I don’t feel pretty,” she said through broken sobs. The outfit didn’t work, the hair didn’t straighten right, it just didn’t come together for her that morning, and she didn’t FEEL pretty. You know what? I get it. I do. I’ve spent the better part of my forty-something years not feeling pretty. And, it matters. It just does.

As women, we are created to feel lovely and beautiful. It was knit into our very fiber as we were pieced together by the Creator. That particular morning though, I took that baby girl into my arms, looked her straight in the eyes, and told her the same thing I’m going to say to you. If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it 409 million times - we cannot trust our feelings. If we are directed by what we feel at any given moment, we will be deceived over and over. Sometimes we don’t FEEL pretty, but God SAYS we are beautiful, without flaw, captivating, and altogether lovely! It’s the days we don’t feel pretty that we have to stop looking and start digging!

Dig our heels in and decide to believe that we have unfading, unchanging beauty. Dig a hole for our flag, take our ground, and determine not to follow feelings, but instead be outrageously particular about what we give power to in our minds. My girl didn’t feel pretty, but she IS beautiful. Today, you may not FEEL pretty, yet you ARE beautiful. The next day, the outfit may flop, the hair may fail, yet we are His, which makes us radiant every day!