Inspired by the song “Priceless” by For King & Country

It’s time to start training our young ladies and young men to view beauty differently.

It’s time to start helping them see the beauty in every soul – not just those that immediately catch our eye because of the outward casing.

It’s time to stop buying the Hollywood lie that only certain things count as beauty – a chiseled jaw, a tiny waist, a muscular arm, symmetrical facial features.

Yes, those things certainly are beautiful, and we can appreciate them – but more than anything else, it’s a person’s soul that makes them beautiful.

What if, instead of just saying “You’re beautiful,” we started saying …

You’re beautiful because your passion for what you love shines so brightly in your eyes.

You’re beautiful because you love others well.

You’re beautiful because you have a servant’s heart.

You’re beautiful because you desire to be more like Christ.

You’re beautiful because you dream big and work hard for those dreams.

You’re beautiful because you find the joy in all things.

You’re beautiful because you sacrifice so much for those you love.

You’re beautiful because you have high standards.

You’re beautiful because you have a lot of determination and you respond well to setbacks.

You’re beautiful because you ache for those who are suffering & you tenderly care for them.

You’re beautiful because you are humble and know that you need God’s grace for your sinner’s heart.

You’re beautiful because you worship with abandon, pray with fierceness, and disciple with fervor.

You’re beautiful because you make me laugh and bring me smiles with your kind gestures.

If we started saying those things, don’t you think our standards for beauty would start changing? If we chose to see the heart of a person reflected in all they do, don’t you think their beauty would be startlingly clearer? Don’t you think that’s how Christ sees us?

He looks beyond the ugly sin caked all over our desperate hearts, and He sees what He created – masterpieces that He came to redeem. Works of art designed to display His beauty to a world that craves beauty. Loveliness that is revealed when we articulate His character through our actions.

Chasing a beautiful body is exhausting and disappointing since it’s never “enough” to satisfy our hungry souls.

But chasing the beauty of a God-flooded soul? Now there’s something that will bring joy and contentment that will last. It’s an active type of beauty – the kind that’s always being revealed in new ways and always going deeper with new discoveries.

It’s the kind of beauty that we need to teach our sons and daughters to chase, to develop, to love, and to appreciate.

Because when we do, we bring honor to the Author of Beauty – the most Beautiful of all – God the Creator and Master Designer. And that’s the most breathtaking kind of beauty.