True Beauty

Dear Adelade,

You have reached an age where mean girls abound.  They seem to wait in the shadows to pounce on every unsuspecting sweet girl who passes by.  You haven’t been immune to the mean girls around you.  They have bitten with their awful words and their desperate attempts.  They have wounded you with their inexplicable anger.  They have made you feel small.

Yet, you handle them so well.  You always have.  You try to talk it out.  You try to reason.  You try to make things right.  But, you can’t make right a person who wants to do wrong.  You sure try, though, don’t you?

But, your latest run-in with a mean girl beats all the others.  She has said something that couldn’t be more false.  She has lied about you.  She used a word that could never be associated with your sweet spirit, your kind ways, or your beautiful face.  She used the word ugly.

You are the opposite of ugly.  You are a child of God.  Your life radiates His goodness.  You love, you care about others, you cry your eyes out when you have hurt someone.  You love animals, you take care of your brother and sister, you draw beautiful pictures and show God’s glory through your abilities.  You aren’t perfect, my girl.  None of us is.  But, you are beautiful.

And then there is your sweet face.  Your adorable smattering of freckles.  Your sea blue eyes and the way you can wink on both sides. Your smile, friendly and kind.  Your face is a pretty and honest reflection of the beauty that is inside you.  Your face is the perfect fit for your sweet personality.

But, there’s something you must remember, Adelade.  It’s not about your face.  It’s not about what length your hair is or what style of clothing you wear or how tall you are.  Beauty is about who you ARE.  It’s about your princess status in the kingdom of God.  It’s about the way that you let His love pour out of you in big and small ways.  Beauty is about living for Jesus Christ.  It’s about loving your friends and loving the mean girls.  It’s about giving your life for God.  Giving your life for others.  Being kind.  Treating people how you enjoy being treated.

It’s about making sure that you are never the mean girl.

That’s the thing about mean girls, Adelade.  They feel ugly.  They act ugly.  They want other people to feel ugly, too.  And that’s exactly why you should feel sorry for them.  That’s why you should make sure that if you ever start feeling ugly or acting ugly that you remember the absolute truth about you.  That truth is that you are God’s precious daughter.  He made you.  He drew you to Himself.  He claimed you and said, “She is mine.”  He made you beautiful.

And you are, Adelade.  You are so beautiful.