As a wife, the one passage of Scripture that challenges me the most is 1 Peter 3:3-4.

It says:

“Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.”

Hmm!

I thought my husband would be attracted to my external beauty that I usually give so much attention to. But according to the word of God, my external beauty amounts to nothing unless it is first complemented by my internal beauty.

Look at the description of internal beauty that “attracts” both my husband and God: “inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit,” which according the the Word “is of great worth in God’s sight.”

Wow!

I mean, how can I, a talkative person who does not run out of ideas and opinions about anything and everything, have “a gentle and quiet spirit?” Gentle???? Quiet?????

Impossible! Right?

Wrong!

If it was impossible, why would the word of God call a wife to have that internal beauty? Just to laugh at those of us wives who are loud, talkative and opinionated?

Absolutely not!

You see, my internal beauty, “the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit,” can only be found in a beauty salon called “spending time with the spirit and the word of God;” in short I call it the “Real Beauty Salon.”

The word of God is spirit and life.

Jesus said, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life. ” John 6:63

Praise God!

And the word of God says, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14

Since the word of God is full of grace and truth, when I study it, when I spend time with it in prayer, it does its internal beautifying work, through grace and truth, making the word “flesh” and making it “dwell” in me.

Wow! Praise God!

So, whenever I prepare to wear expensive perfume, make up, and that nice summer dress that I know my husband surely loves, I have to remind myself:

“Missy! Don’t be a fool! Before you put on those external “decorations,” go to your “Real Beauty Salon,” to your “War-Room,” and have the Professional Beautician put on your internal, spiritual “Makeup.”

When I come out of that Real Beauty Salon, before I even put on any makeup, my Baby starts complementing me. And I quietly praise my “Beautician” saying, “Oh, LORD, Your Word is true and I found it and I ate it. It is my joy and my heart’s delight.”

“When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, LORD God Almighty.” Jeremiah 15:16

May God forbid that I and any one of you wives reading this ever try to attract our husbands with our external beauty, neglecting and forgetting to wear our internal jewelry and ornaments.

“Does a young woman forget her jewelry,
a bride her wedding ornaments?
Yet my people have forgotten me,
days without number.” Jeremiah 2:32 ///