How Does God See Me?

Behold-Her Beauty presents: “How Does God See Me? A mother who learns to see herself through God’s eyes through her 12-year-old daughter.

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Learning to See Myself Through God’s Eyes Through My 12-year-old daughter – Bekah and Stacey Pardoe:

Stacey:

Do you ever compare yourself to other women and embrace self-critical thoughts?  Sadly, most women know how it feels to look around a room of beautiful women and feel like we come up lacking. I’ve been there, and this is my story.

I was in kindergarten the first time I compared myself to another little girl.  That was the day I decided I wasn’t pretty.  Jenny had beautiful blonde curls and always wore stylish dresses.  I felt awkward when I wore dresses, and my straight, brown hair didn’t feel beautiful to me. Because I didn’t feel pretty, I decided to embrace my tomboyish ways and stop trying to be beautiful.  I convinced my mom to let me get a short bowl-style haircut, and I started buying boyish clothes and high-top shoes.  I decided that if I couldn’t be pretty, I would be a rough and tough tomboy and embrace my new style.

I was in kindergarten the first time I compared myself to another little girl.  That was the day I decided I wasn’t pretty. -Stacey Pardoe #comparison #pretty #beauty

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I enjoyed my boyish image for a few years; however, when I reached middle school, I grew my hair out and started shopping in the girls’ clothing department again.  This led to a decade in which I learned to embrace my sportiness (I was an athlete throughout my teen years), but I rarely felt beautiful.

By the time I reached my twenties, I was a teacher and loved traveling and backpacking through the mountains in my free time.  During these years, I often had a difficult time embracing my inner desire to be pretty and focused on my passions for teaching and traveling.

A God Shift –

Sometime in my mid-thirties, something within me shifted.  God started to show me what it meant to see myself as he saw me.  I was a mother at this point in my life, and my journey began one day as I stood in front of the mirror, grabbing my love handles and chastising myself for eating too much chocolate.  I suddenly sensed a gentle impression that whispered the following words to my heart, “Would you treat Bekah, your precious little daughter, the way you’re treating yourself?” “Absolutely not!” I answered.  “Then don’t treat yourself with such a lack of grace and kindness either,” the quiet voice lovingly whispered.

In the months that followed, the same voice began gently speaking to me about the way I saw and treated my body. When I shoved handfuls of junk food into my mouth to fill an emotional void, the voice whispered, “Would you treat your child this way?  Would you shove food into her mouth to fill her emotional emptiness?” When I caught myself exercising excessively to compensate for overeating, the voice whispered, “Would you tell your daughter to run 10 miles to make up for too much ice cream last night?”

At times, when I stood in front of the mirror and grumbled about my “imperfections,” the voice whispered, “Would you tell your daughter that her freckles are ugly, her hair is too frizzy, or her thighs are too chunky?”

Throughout the years that followed, God began to change the way I saw myself and the way I treated myself.  Instead of criticizing my legs for being too thick or having ugly veins, I began thanking them for carrying me through long days of parenting children, running errands, and even jogging down country roads. Instead of grabbing my love handles and longing for the tight abs of my youth, I started thanking my body for growing and birthing three beautiful children. I also began seeing wrinkles, creases, age spots, and gray hairs as signs of a well-lived life indicators of wisdom. 

Instead of criticizing my legs for being too thick or having ugly veins, I began thanking them for carrying me through long days of parenting children, running errands, and even jogging down country roads. -Stacey Pardoe #gratitude #encouragement #truebeauty

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God Lessons –

God began showing me the way he sees me and replacing my critical thoughts with kind thoughts. Over the past years, God has softened my heart.  I’m not as rough and tough as I used to be. I have learned that true beauty grows within us.  For me, that beauty has developed as I’ve learned to love my God-given body and embrace myself just the way I am. I am still a tomboy at heart.  I love baseball caps, ponytails, jogging shoes, and T-shirts.  However, I don’t dress this way because I’m trying to compensate for something that feels lacking inside of me.  Instead, I dress this way because sportiness is a part of who I am.  I’ve learned to embrace it and be proud of it. 

I’ve also learned that true beauty isn’t determined by the clothes I wear, the way I do my hair, or how much I weigh.  Instead, God looks at my heart. I’m no longer afraid to be beautiful—even when I’m wearing my old baseball cap and a T-shirt. I’ve been teaching these lessons to my 12-year-old daughter, Bekah, too.  It’s a true honor to invite her into this conversation to share her thoughts on embracing inner beauty instead of comparing ourselves to others.

Looking Into The Mirror With God –

Here’s Bekah:

Sometimes, you might look into the mirror and tell yourself that you’re ugly or fat.  I’ve done it before, and maybe you have, too.  It’s very easy to do and very easy to compare your features to those around you.  

Whether you think your nose is too crooked or the gap between your teeth is too large, you have to remind yourself those thoughts aren’t true and they are coming from Satan.

When you start to feel this way about yourself, remind yourself of everything you love about yourself. Tell yourself how your features make you unique, and really build yourself up.   

It’s also a good idea to talk to someone else about these feelings.  Without fresh air and exposure, these thoughts will never heal. True beauty is not in the way you look physically.  True beauty comes from within. 

God made you the way you are for a reason, so own it!   

The Creator of the Earth thinks you are beautiful, so wear your features with pride!

God made you the way you are for a reason, so own it!   
The Creator of the Earth thinks you are beautiful, so wear your features with pride! Beka Pardoe #

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MEET THE AUTHORS- STACEY & BEKA PARDOE

Stacey and Bekah Pardoe are mother-daughter coauthors who are passionate about helping women of all ages grow in their faith.  Bekah is in seventh grade and is into running cross-country, caring for animals of all sorts, and hanging out with her friends.  Stacey is a wife, mother of three, professional writer, and lover of wild places.  Bekah and Stacey recently published a mother-daughter devotional called Girl to Girl: 60 Mother-Daughter Devotions for a Closer Relationship and Deeper Faith.  You can find their book right here or follow Stacey’s blog at staceypardoe.com. 

Girl to Girl: 60 Mother-Daughter Devotions for a Closer Relationship and Deeper Faith includes 60 devotions with Scripture, commentaries from both of us, conversation starters, and even a shared journaling section after each devotion. 

Our vision is for girls ages 7-17 to enjoy it with their moms, grandmas, or older women they look up to.  However, mothers and daughters of all ages are using this book to grow closer together!  This book makes a wonderful gift for a mother or daughter you care about!

You can buy your paperback or eBook on Amazon right here.  

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Remember, you are Beautiful!

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Beauty Is in the Eye of Our Beholder seeks to help women see themselves as God’s beautiful daughters. Some describe a faithful Christian as glowing. This spiritual glow from the Holy Spirit comes from the inside out, radiating our body, character, conversation, and conduct – our whole being.

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