Hot & fresh out of the womb, there was no denying I was a 100% girl. For reasons anatomically & not so obvious. Since I could walk, I click-clacked around in those fake Cinderella heels that came with dress up costumes. I snuck into my Grandma's make-up almost every day after coming home from elementary school. I shaved my legs in secret until I was allowed. If it wasn't pink, I didn't wear it. My hair was always perfect. Dirty was never an adjective used in my direction. I knew every word to every Britney Spears song. My Barbies were always as well groomed as I was. I carried a purse before I had any real need for one. I never had a tomboy phase, never played a sport and never felt the need to inspect any kind of bug/reptile/comic book. I was the tried & true example of a girlie girl.
With that being said, due to lack of maternal impact in my life, I could be the Princess of Pink, but no one really taught me to be a lady.
Through the years, I've transformed into the relatively well-mannered civil human being I am today. I always have a napkin in my lap during dinner, I don't eruct in public, and if there is a putrid stench in the air, I promise you, that was not me.
However, lately I've come to realize that truly being a lady is so much more than behavior. Sure, the way you conduct yourself does matter, but I think being a lady is more of a state of mind.
See, woman was made to be opposite of man. In the bible, God created Adam to rule over all the creatures and all that, and made Eve to be his sidekick, his mate for life. She was made FROM a man, but was indeed, not a man at all. She was the final touch of the creation, the cherry on top, the last piece to the puzzle. Someone recently told me that if God's creation was a symphony, then a woman is the symphony's final crescendo, the climax of the entire overture. The final wowing note. That is not something to be taken lightly.
Ladies, sisters, friends: YOU are a product of God's artwork. You are His masterpiece. Beth Moore said that "God did not forget you were a girl when He made you. He knew exactly what he was doing." Aside from giving you a powerful encouraging word on your gender, to not let yourself be taken as the weaker anything, much less the weaker sex, I would like to take this opportunity to urge you to act as God's ultimate creation.
It's not enough to just remember to say please and thank you, albeit important. Always have a kind word on your lips, rather than filthy curses and toilet humor. Let the grace of God outpour from you onto others, instead of ill behaviors. Clothe your body the way you want to be thought of, leave certain things to be uncovered by the one who decides to share covenant with you someday. Make it easier on our boys to have unpolluted minds. The media does enough badgering as it is. Let's stop hating on other girls for stupid reasons. I am the first to admit I am guilty of this, but in the end, it only causes bitterness. And bitterness is not an easy elephant to conceal. Be quick to love, not to anger. Just exude what God intended you to be: Beauty.
Now I love make-up, pay no mind to that. I can pack on layers and layers of rouge and foundation all day, but if the beauty of the Lord is not upon my face, none of it will do any good. I try and remember that everyday, and on the days when I really do feel God's supreme glory on my face, those are the days eyeliner and lip gloss lay forgotten in the depths of my purse.
This is what God has been showing me lately, and I just needed to share it.
I love you, and thanks for reading
-A.A.
