Cosmetic Christians

I have several friends who have undergone cosmetic procedures to enhance their physical appearance. I myself had a nose job in 1999. As a Christian there were people around me who questioned whether cosmetic surgery was the "right" thing to do. "Shouldn't we be satisfied with the way God made our bodies," one woman suggested to me with a hint of condemnation. Recently I've given this topic a lot of thought, as one of my girlfriends is deeply struggling with negative results of cosmetic adjustments. I have concluded that we should indeed be thankful for what God has given us and for the incredible detail in which He has designed our bodies to function, grow and heal. However, I do NOT believe we should sit back and pretend to be satisfied when we are not. Self-esteem, particularly for women, is an uphill battle from the time we reach puberty until the day we die. Women obsess about weight, pimples, wrinkles, breasts sagging, flabby arms, chubby thighs, muffin tops...you name any physical issue and there is a woman somewhere obsessing about it. We need to take responsibility to the degree that we take care of our bodies, eat right, exercise, take vitamins, etc. But when a physical condition becomes something you cannot control, and it is something that dampens your self-worth, I believe the "right" course of action is to take action. For me, it was a nose job. For over twenty years people teased me about my nose. Though I laughed off their jokes, inside it wounded me. Several of my girlfriends have had breast implants, one has had a breast reduction, numerous ladies I know use botox on a regular basis, have had face lifts, eyes lasered, tummy tucks, liposuction and vericose veins removed. I applaud each one of them.

Ladies, we all shave, wax, pluck, color, moisturize, peel, suck it in and cover whatever we feel we need to on a daily and nightly basis. Aside from cost, what is the difference between a surgical, lasting procedure and the procedures we perform on ourselves every day? Both are methods of beauty enhancement. How can there be condemnation in one and not in the other? Honestly, I don't think God cares either way. I think His concern is your heart and your relationship with Him. If you pray to Him with plump lips or thin lips, it doesn't matter. If you love Him as a size 4 or a size 14, it doesn't matter. If you kneel before Him with chubby thighs and a muffin top or with teeny titties and a flat belly, He loves you the same. There are no spiritual ramifications regarding external beauty enhancement whatsoever.

"Isn't it vanity?" I've heard that question a hundred times. The answer is simple. Yes. It is vanity, and if you read the words of King Solomon you'll understand that everything in life is vanity. The car you drive... vanity. The clothes you wear...vanity. The house you live in...vanity. So, before shaking a finger and muttering judgmental words about how true beauty is on the inside and only vain people get cosmetic surgery; look around you and cast the first stone... but before you throw it, I'd seek cover because that glass house is coming down. ~