greenbaggins
Puritan Board Doctor
One of the things that distresses me most about modern culture is that there is a fake standard of beauty to which no woman can possibly attain. All you have to do is look at a few interviews with (even) supermodels, and they will tend to express dissatisfaction with their looks at some point. The only way to describe society's standards of beauty is to take the measurements of one woman, the face of another woman, etc., until you have the complete picture. Needless to say, no woman has all of this, and it is grossly unfair to women to expect them to attain to this nonexistent standard.
The effect such a standard has on men is evident from rampant p0rnography problems even in the church. Men are no longer satisfied with their wives, since their wives are (mentally) being made to conform to some outside standard of beauty.
The effect on women is that they become profoundly dissatisfied with their own looks, they become wildly insecure with regard to their husband's affections, and they push themselves to dangerous measures in order to obtain "that look."
The pressure to conform mentally to this standard is immense. We are bombarded with it every day. I would suggest that a biblical approach is needed here.
Men, each man's wife need to be the standard of beauty to her husband, to which standard all other women fall short. Whether this takes an act of the will or not doesn't matter here. Proverbs 5:15-19 is a pointer in this direction, certainly. Furthermore, men, you need to say this often to your wife. Women have notoriously short memories when it comes to whether or not their husbands have said that they love them. ;-) Men, it is your responsibility to let your wives know that you think she is the most beautiful creature on the planet. Period.
Women, instead of seeking to conform yourself to a non-biblical standard, work hardest on that inner beauty of which 1 Peter 3 and 1 Timothy 2 speak. Secondly, with regard to your outer beauty, do not feel that you have to conform to the world's standard of beauty. And, in turn, admire your husbands. Just as much as you love to hear from your husband that you are beautiful, so also does your husband's fragile ego need to hear that you admire his sterling qualities.
The effect such a standard has on men is evident from rampant p0rnography problems even in the church. Men are no longer satisfied with their wives, since their wives are (mentally) being made to conform to some outside standard of beauty.
The effect on women is that they become profoundly dissatisfied with their own looks, they become wildly insecure with regard to their husband's affections, and they push themselves to dangerous measures in order to obtain "that look."
The pressure to conform mentally to this standard is immense. We are bombarded with it every day. I would suggest that a biblical approach is needed here.
Men, each man's wife need to be the standard of beauty to her husband, to which standard all other women fall short. Whether this takes an act of the will or not doesn't matter here. Proverbs 5:15-19 is a pointer in this direction, certainly. Furthermore, men, you need to say this often to your wife. Women have notoriously short memories when it comes to whether or not their husbands have said that they love them. ;-) Men, it is your responsibility to let your wives know that you think she is the most beautiful creature on the planet. Period.
Women, instead of seeking to conform yourself to a non-biblical standard, work hardest on that inner beauty of which 1 Peter 3 and 1 Timothy 2 speak. Secondly, with regard to your outer beauty, do not feel that you have to conform to the world's standard of beauty. And, in turn, admire your husbands. Just as much as you love to hear from your husband that you are beautiful, so also does your husband's fragile ego need to hear that you admire his sterling qualities.