Beautiful

So, this seems like a pet peeve but I have thought a lot about it and I really think this is a much deeper issue in our society. It all started on my way to work. I have an hour (well, 45 minutes now post move!) to think or talk or listen as I drive to and from work. Every morning I was hearing the same ProActive commercial. Now I love ProActive- it works, but after hearing this commercial a billion times I think I may not recommend them so highly. The commercial is targeted to teens or parents of teens and says about acne:
"...it robs them of their joy."
I may be waaaay over thinking this, but even so, here is my rant. ACNE should not rob you of your joy. I firmly believe that joy and happiness are two different things and JOY comes from the Maker of the Universe.

Psalm 19:8 "The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes."

It breaks my heart when I hear this commercial (I know, I should change the channel or get XM radio). To think about how this commercial just falls in line with our society when girls are taught from such a young age that their joy and happiness should be derived from their looks. You are what you wear. You are equal to your beauty. See all those girls on tv, that is who you should aspire to be. This world has NOTHING for us. If your hope is built on the brand of clothes you wear, what you look like physically, or any other aspect of your outward appearance then you will surely have great disappointment in life. Now, I am not saying that I do not fall victim to this or that I don't care a thing about what I look like. However, my appearance is not what defines me. I am SO THANKFUL that my mother raised my sister and I to believe that who we are, and not what we look like, is what is important. She taught us to present ourself well, but more importantly, taught us that the kind of people we are is what truly matters. Now that I have a daughter the brokenness of this world is so much more evident to me. With the rise of social media (and media in general for that matter), the emphasis on physical appearance has increased since I was a child. I pray that my daughter grows up knowing that she is loved for who she is, not what she looks like. That she has a heavenly Father who loves her no matter how ugly she is (inside and out). I pray that she knows that her hope is found in Jesus and not in the pages of Cosmo. I pray that she knows her worth is not in what she looks like. I am going to try hard to keep her from believing otherwise. It is difficult because everywhere we go I hear "She is so cute" or "She is a beautiful baby". Well she is. But I typically say "She is a sweet baby" or something to that effect. I would think she was cute if she had four heads. But I want HER to believe that she is beautiful because she is herself. She doesn't need makeup, certain clothing, dyed hair, etc. to be beautiful. She is beautiful to our Savior. YOU are too, as a matter of fact. So, in summary:
Our joy comes from the Lord.
Please don't ever let anything or anyone tell you something of this world has control over that. We will have trials of many kinds in this life, we will have sorrows and disappointments and suffering. But we will always have joy if our hope is found in Heaven.