Face Facts

In the KJV, 1 Peter 3:1-3 says, "Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives; While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear. Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price." [The underlining is mine.]

Or in the NIV, verse 2 says:  "Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes."

How does that philosophy fit in today's world?  Ever dwindling, I am afraid.  I hear Walmart is now getting in the biz of selling cosmetics directly to infants -- okay, 8 year olds -- same thing. 


This picture has nothing to do
with geogirl, but expressed my
feelings perfectly!



As seen at www.theweek.com:

What exactly is geoGirl?It's a new line of 69 cosmetics products, from blush and mascara to exfoliators, aimed at the tween market. It's designed especially for young girls who want to use "real cosmetics, but with natural ingredients," says Joel Carden of Pacific World, the line's manufacturer.

These cosmetics apparently have anti-aging properties.  You know, so your 8 year old won't look too wrinkly.  Better keep those bath times short too! 

I will say, I have never objected to girls playing dress-up, donning fancy dresses and shoes, and smearing red lipstick all over.  I think it is an important part of "playing mommy" if your mommy wears make up.  And "playing mommy" is great for teaching girls how to be wives and mothers. 

But, what are the messages being given to an 8 year old who has her own make up to wear to school?  I am afraid they are this:

1.  You aren't very pretty.  We need to cover you up so that no one will stare.

2.  The valuable time that we could have spent talking or playing games or doing chores is better spent getting you "all dolled up" because your value is in how you look.

3.  You must spend money to be beautiful.  That is a gift of the cosmetic counter, not God.

4.  You are old enough now to begin attracting men.  Get busy!  You are nothing without a man.

I don't think I am going overboard here.  Personally, I want to protect my daughter from attracting men until the proper season -- young adulthood.  And then, I want her to attract the right type of man: the man who will find her beautiful, not the mask she wears.  (What a shock some men must experience when they wake up on their honeymoon and see their wives' real faces for the first time!)  Let him see her mischievious smile and twinkly eyes, her desire to do good, and her love for the Lord.

Fountain of Youth?

The standards for youth and beauty have become impossibly high in our culture.  Last night I caught a glimpse of one of those insipid "TV news magazine" shows that pretend they have the inside scoop on all the stars.  The twenty-something reporters spent several minutes expressing their horror over some bad photos of Suzanne Somers -- probably the first bad pix she has ever taken. 

She really didn't look too bad according to normal standards, but her face was a little puffy.  A cosmetic surgeon speculated that she had received too many injections  of fat in her quest to look young.  Why would she do such a thing?  Well, she is touring the country hawking a book about how to maintain a youthful appearance...so, she is probably under a lot of the normal pressures of traveling, late nights schmoozing, and being an old lady.  What?  Old lady?  Yes!  The poor thing is 64 years old!  Old enough to be a great-grandma!  But Hollywood demands that she always look her best -- no, much better than that.  They demand that she look 20...forever!  I have news for them -- she can't do it.  Our bodies -- since the fall of man -- run down.  You can push it off a bit, with makeup and hair dye, but eventually there comes an end to how much you can fool people.

Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.  Proverbs 31:30

Why can't we value age and wisdom?  I think I will be more comfortable following the beauty secrets of a Betty White...look like a grandma, act like a grandma, and laugh a lot.