“I, too, find the flower beautiful in its outward appearance, but a deeper beauty lies concealed within.”  – Piet Mondrian

“While you judge me by my outward appearance, I am silently doing the same to you, even though there’s a 99% chance that in both cases, our assumptions are wrong.” – Richelle E. Goodrich

“When you wear a mask, it changes your outward appearance but also has an influence on you inside.” – Yusuke Kishi

“For the Lord sees not as a man sees:  Man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” – 1 Samuel 16:7 NKJV

Take some quiet time today and contemplate all that makes up your outward appearance.  Even though physical appearance tends to be front of mind, take time to consider everything that encompasses it.  What do others see not only when they look at you, but when they hear what you say, or when they observe your actions?   Think about the energy, time, and endurance it takes to develop, construct and maintain it – most of which, as Richelle Goodrich states above, is 99% a cover-up or some form of a facade at best.

There is so much emphasis today placed on physical attractiveness – so we spend our time at the gym, not as much driven by our health consciousness as it is by our need to feel self-acceptance and the approval of others.

When I see someone adorned in tattoos or body art, the massive upper body muscles on a guy or the fit, perfect curves and complexion of a woman – I think about the amount of time, energy and money that must be necessary to keep up such a perfect outward image – either driven by the need to feel social acceptance or by the ego’s need to feel attractive. 

Sadly, when you think about it deeply, the body is nothing but an outward shell – really having nothing to do with who we truly are or why we are here.

Now think about how someone’s words can become an accomplice to their outward appearance – used to deceive others into believing things that have no truth or value. 

We can tell others we are “just fine”, yet we can be dying on the inside.  We can say, “I love you!”  – but feel an emptiness and loneliness inside that won’t go away.  We can tell the boss how insightful they are to maintain our job status – but really feel a lack of leadership and the deep desire to work for someone who inspires us again.

Think about how much our WORDS are driven by outward appearances – by how it looks and feels to others around us.  We tell people what they WANT to hear – all to appease them or make them feel better about us as individuals.

Now think about how ACTIONS are used to manipulate outward appearances.  I was once told by one spouse how much they “hate” their mate in private- yet see them pictured together in a loving pose on Facebook – all to make others believe they are a “happy” couple.  We can buy the fancy car or truck to portray a well-to-do image when in fact we are smothered in debt.  We can go to church every Sunday, but act like the devil the remaining six days of the week.

We can think our efforts to maintain an outward appearance are working, but like Yusuke Kishi states above, that mask we wear changes us on the inside more than we realize.  Every word spoken that holds little truth – every action we take that hides what is really going on – each are in some respect eating away at our peace and contentment.

Each of us has an outward appearance we maintain.  How does yours stack up when it comes to what lies INSIDE of you?  Do the two match?  Are there any inconsistencies, mistruths, or deceiving actions that cause conflict between what is portrayed on the outside and what lies within?

I don’t say this in a judgmental tone.  All of us are human, meaning, we never reach perfection in anything we attempt.  I have personally weighed the balance between my outward appearances and my true, inner self and have seen the areas where I need to make necessary changes in my thoughts, words and actions to make them all more congruent. 

It isn’t about judgement as much as it is about peace – to live a life that is authentic and true.  What lies within our hearts is what matters most!  Our Lord knows this.  He looks there FIRST when he looks at who we are.  He knows the body, the words, and the actions can all get twisted together with how we want to be seen, perceived, and treated by others.  He knows that matching our outward appearance to our inner being is what brings us greater peace and ultimate joy.

Think if we cared more about what lies WITHIN a person than we do about how they look? Think if we cared more about and spent more time on what others saw IN US than what they thought about our physical attractiveness?  Think if our spoken words were impeccable – matching precisely with our inner values.  What truths would be revealed?  How would those truths change our lives and the lives of those around us?

What if our actions were in sync with what lies inside of our hearts?  Would we act out of conviction more and out of false pretenses less?  Would those actions have more impact?  Would the results be more meaningful?

Would what others thought of us in the process even matter anymore – if what they saw on the OUTSIDE matched what was on the INSIDE?

Just like the flower, there is a deeper beauty that lies within us.  After all, that is who we truly are – the part of us created in the image of the Creator – the part that lives on and never dies.

You know…. all the aspects (looks, words, actions) of the outward appearance fade away in this life.  What lies within lasts!  Think if the everlasting nature of what lies within each of us MATCHED every aspect of our outward appearance?

Maybe then and only then…. would how we are seen by others, the impact our words would have on them, and the actions they observed through us become something that NEVER faded away 😊

God bless!