So…we’ve told you our stories, of God’s turning ashes into beauty, winter into a blazing glory, and death into eternal life. We’ve told you how “the testing of your faith produces endurance” (James 1:3), and how we, as teen girls, have experienced that ourselves, in our own lives.
We said in our first post that our mission was to show girls that they are all beautiful in God’s eyes, and to help them learn the true meaning of beauty. We talked about “the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit” (1 Peter 3:3-4), and the value God places on our inner beauty. We also talked about the fact—yes, fact—that God sees every one of us—every one—as beautiful. But what we haven’t really talked about it how we’re beautiful.
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How does God see us? A few weeks ago, we had a guest preacher come to our church. In his sermon, he told us a story about a king. I’d like to tell it to you now. (Of course, the writer in me will flesh the story out in places, but in all important areas, it’s the same.)
Once, a king left his palace on business, traveling with his royal entourage. His being a king, he traveled in relative comfort, and received a joyful welcome in every town and village through which he passed. He was a benevolent king, kind and compassionate to his subjects. People who saw him instantly knew him for his rich silken robes and heavy golden crown. All who served him loved him, for they knew his heart and the depth of his love for them.
The king’s journey was long and often tedious, despite his royal advantages, and so, as he passed through a small village, he called for a halt. Many of his bodyguard wondered why he had stopped them here, in this poor village of peasants, instead of in a richer, more refined town a few hours down the road. But instead of questioning their king, they simply nodded and went about preparing camp.
The king, though tired, was curious about the village’s residents, and went to explore the square. This being a small, poor community, the square consisted of a well and a few rusty watering troughs. Still, the king stood in the shadows of the bakery and watched as the women of the village came to draw water.
He hadn’t stood there but a minute when a young woman emerged from a hut and crossed the dusty ground to the well. She was young, no more than sixteen or seventeen, but she already possessed great physical beauty. Even dressed in her threadbare brown tunic and peasant’s skirt, she was breathtaking.
Still, her physical beauty was not what captured the king’s attention.
As she walked across the dusty square, the girl carried herself in a way that bespoke love and gentleness, beauty and respect. Her smile came easily and often to her lips, and she stopped to talk to every person she passed by. As she worked her way to the well, the king noticed that she left behind a trail of smiling faces and skipping feet. Signs of a gentle, caring spirit. He found himself enraptured with this inward beauty.
All too soon, the girl drew her water and returned to her home, disappearing from his view. In a daze, the king walked back to his camp. All that night, and on into the next day, he couldn’t stop thinking of the girl and her beautiful spirit. When he returned to his palace weeks later and still could think of nothing else, he knew that she was far more than a passing fancy.
Summoning his most trusted advisors, the king told them of the girl and her mysterious, enchanting beauty. They told him that he should send for her at once, and take her as his wife. He was the king, after all. He could do such a thing and no one could argue with him. But the king shook his head. “No,” he said. “She is far too beautiful for that. I must marry her like any other man would. I must win her heart.”
And so, leaving his closest friend in charge of the kingdom, he clothed himself in peasant garb and set out on foot for the village. It took him many arduous weeks, and more than once he went without food. At night, he slept on the harsh, rocky ground, and woke stiff and aching. But at last he made it.
Ragged and sore from his long journey, the king stumbled to the nearest hut and begged for a place to sleep. The blacksmith, for that was who he was, gladly opened his home to him, thinking him a weary traveler in need of refuge. Little did he know that he housed a king that night.
The next day, the king rose and went about looking for work. He soon found it in the stables, mucking out stalls and caring for the village’s livestock. He found the work difficult, but rewarding. And he was near the one he loved.
For three long years, the king toiled, earning his keep like every other peasant in the village. His back ached, and his hands blistered and callused, but to him it was worth it. For when he wasn’t working, he was wooing the heart of his beloved, courting her like the peasant boys of the village.
At the end of his third year in the village, the king knew it was time for him to return. He went to the one he loved and, kneeling at her feet, asked her to marry him. Joyfully, she consented, and ran to tell her family the news. It was only after they were wed that the king revealed his true identity.
Confused, the girl asked, “Why did you do it? Why did you lower yourself to my level in order to win my heart? Why not just take me as your wife?”
Slowly, softly, the king drew her into his arms and kissed her. Then, in a voice so soft she could barely hear it, he said, “I loved you too much.”
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So, how does God see us? He sees us as the king in the story saw the peasant girl. We aren't queens draped in all the finery wealth can offer. Often times, we're just like that peasant girl--dirty, dusty, and weary to the bone from all the work we do. We're dressed in rags, totally unfit to become the bride of the One True King. But you know what? God looks past that. He ignores the grit, the rags, the filth of human life, and looks deep into our hearts, longing to touch that place that no man can ever touch--the part that belongs solely to Him. He, as our King, is enraptured with our beauty.
He looks at you and sees someone uniquely beautiful, someone no one else can be! He is the King in the story--so in love with you that He'll leave His kingdom in peasant's clothes just to find you and win your heart. Song of Songs 4:7 says, "You are altogether beautiful, my darling, beautiful in every way" (NLT). He is the Great Romancer, headlong in love with you, yearning to sweep you into His arms and sing His unending song of love to you. He created you, and He made no mistake in that creation. You are just the way He planned you to be. He created you and is in love with you.
"You have captivated my heart, my sister, my bride; you have captivated my heart with one glance of your eyes" (Song of Songs 4:9, ESV).
Do you realize that? Do you grasp the full meaning of that verse? He loves you. You are all beautiful to Him. God sees you as captivating, unable to forget. He can't walk away from you and return to His kingdom like nothing ever happened. That's how He sees you. Don't ever forget it.
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"She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue" (Proverbs 31:25-26).
