{"product_id":"beauty-begins-isbn-9781601427311","title":"Beauty Begins","description":"\u003cb\u003eYou are, and always have been, beautiful\u003c\/b\u003e. \u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e“Beauty begins. That’s the point of this book. Our understanding of beauty got started somewhere and somehow, and probably due to someone. Now that may have been a good start, but then again it may not have. But regardless of what your past looks like, we want to offer up this word of hope: It’s never too late to make peace with your reflection.” \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e We live in a culture that’s \u003ci\u003eobsessed \u003c\/i\u003ewith beauty. Walk by any magazine stand or turn on a television and you’ll be bombarded with the images and ideals that our culture believes are the epitome of what it means to be beautiful. And if you’re like most women, you’ve probably spent countless hours trying to measure up to this standard whether you realize it or not. \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eBut if you don’t make peace with your reflection, you’ll end up declaring war on yourself.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e That’s where mother-daughter team Chris Shook and Megan Shook Alpha want to help. In \u003ci\u003eBeauty Begins,\u003c\/i\u003e they challenge each of us to trade the pressure of perfection for God's perfect love. Poignant, relevant, and relatable, \u003ci\u003eBeauty Begins\u003c\/i\u003e is for every woman who wants to reclaim what it means to be truly beautiful. \u003cb\u003ePraise for Beauty Begins\u003c\/b\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “In Beauty Begins, Chris Shook and Megan Shook Alpha have written a vibrant, heartwarming book for women of all ages who live out the universal struggle to see themselves as beautiful. Through their personal stories, biblical insight, and practical wisdom, this mother-daughter duo gives us down-to-earth advice on how to see ourselves clearly through God’s eyes of acceptance and love. I can’t wait to share it with my granddaughters!”\u003cbr\u003e —\u003cb\u003eKay Warren\u003c\/b\u003e, cofounder of Saddleback Church with her husband, Rick; international speaker; and best-selling author of Choose Joy: Because Happiness Isn’t Enough\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “In an age of superficial beauty and supermodel icons, our friends Chris and Megan offer a Christ-centered alternative that begins with the heart of God. Here’s a wise and wonderful guide to where true beauty begins—and to the confidence and contentment that come from it.”\u003cbr\u003e —\u003cb\u003eLee and Leslie Strobel\u003c\/b\u003e, authors of Surviving a Spiritual Mismatch in Marriage\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “True beauty begins when you make peace with your reflection. That’s why Chris Shook and her daughter, Megan, have taken the risk to talk about a topic that is often difficult for women to discuss—self-image. The result is an invitation for ladies of all ages to join this conversation.”\u003cbr\u003e —\u003cb\u003ePastor Steven and Holly Furtick\u003c\/b\u003e, cofounders of Elevation Church, Charlotte, NC\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Beauty in the eyes of the world is distorted. In Beauty Begins, Chris Shook and her daughter, Megan, point women of all ages to the source of true beauty: the heart of God. They reveal that God’s heart is for women to be full of beauty, full of joy, full of peace. Let Chris and Megan clear your vision and teach you the truth of who God made you to be.” \u003cbr\u003e —\u003cb\u003eMatthew Barnett\u003c\/b\u003e, cofounder of the Dream Center and author of God’s Dream for You\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"My friends, Chris Shook and Megan Shook Alpha, have written a wonderful new book called \u003ci\u003eBeauty Begins.\u003c\/i\u003e  In it this powerful mother and daughter team share their insights and wisdom, born from their own experiences, to help women everywhere overcome negative perceptions about themselves and to learn to love and respect the person God made them to be.\"   – \u003cb\u003eVictoria Osteen,\u003c\/b\u003e Co-Pastor, Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas\u003cb\u003eCHRIS SHOOK \u003c\/b\u003eis the co-author  (with her husband, Kerry) of two \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestsellers, \u003ci\u003eOne Month to  Live\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eBe the Message\u003c\/i\u003e. Together they minister at Woodlands Church  outside Houston, Texas. Her daughter, \u003cb\u003eMEGAN SHOOK ALPHA\u003c\/b\u003e, is a graduate of  Baylor University and works as a pastor to students at Woodlands  Church.\u003cb\u003eNote to the Reader \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis book is unique in two ways. First, this book was written by a mother and daughter. Second, it is designed for girls and women of all ages. We address struggles that all women deal with daily, and we also explore the unique relationship between mothers and daughters. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn our society it is impossible not to feel inadequate at times. It’s hard to make it through even one day without feeling insecure about ourselves! As a mother and daughter living in the same hurting world you live in, we will share our struggles, our joys, and how we have learned to embrace this tough yet rewarding life. We aren’t saying we have figured it all out, but we have discovered some practical ways to love the person God made us to be. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs mother and daughter we’ve shared many of the experiences described in this book. For simplicity we has become I in the writing except for a few instances when clarification was necessary. Regardless of your age or life stage, we believe the ideas we present will resonate in your heart. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe main thing we want you to know is that it is never too late for beauty to begin in your life. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eYou shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. \u003cbr\u003e—John 8:32, nkjv \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGod cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—C. S. Lewis \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Distorted Reflection\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBeauty Begins in the Heart of God \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHe has made everything beautiful in its time. \u003cbr\u003e—\u003cb\u003eEcclesiastes 3:11 \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWe are so accustomed to disguise ourselves to others that in the end we become disguised to ourselves. \u003cbr\u003e—\u003cb\u003eFrançois de La Rochefoucauld \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Do you feel beautiful? It’s a simple, straightforward question. But it may be one of the most significant, revealing questions you could ever answer. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI’m not talking about all the cliché answers to the question. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI’m not interested in how you think you should answer the \u003cbr\u003equestion. What I’m really asking is, “How do you feel about \u003cbr\u003eyour reflection?” When you look in the mirror, what is the first \u003cbr\u003eemotion that hits you? Is it a feeling of complete contentment? \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDoes your reflection fill you with a deep sense of peace or a \u003cbr\u003edeep sense of inadequacy? I mean, most of the time do you feel \u003cbr\u003ebeautiful? \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI think the majority of women, if we’re completely honest, would admit that we don’t feel beautiful much of the time. Recently our women’s ministry team at Woodlands Church surveyed hundreds of young women and asked this question: “If you could change anything about the way you look, would you?” More than 70 percent of them answered yes and went on to name all the things they would change. We also asked, “On a scale of one to ten, how beautiful do you think you are, with one being ‘I can’t think of anything I like about myself’ and ten being ‘I am completely content.’” Only 11 percent of the girls said, “I’m completely content and at peace with my reflection.” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe vast majority of young ladies who took the survey are committed Christians who are very involved in church and have great friends. I have found, however, that this struggle to feel beautiful is almost as prevalent among Christian women as it is among non-Christian women. The truth is, almost every woman battles to feel beautiful every single day. Most of us have never made peace with our reflections. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eStealing Beauty \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMaking peace with your reflection is so important, because if you fail to do that, you will declare war on yourself! Generations of women have become casualties in this war on self-worth. The battle to feel beautiful has contributed to everything from low self-esteem and poor body image to eating disorders and self-harm. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e• Ninety-one percent of women surveyed on a college campus had attempted to control             their weight through dieting; 22 percent dieted “often” or “always.”\u003cbr\u003e• Eighty-six percent of young women reported the onset of an eating disorder by age twenty;   43 percent reported the onset between the ages of sixteen and twenty.\u003cbr\u003e• Anorexia is the third most common chronic illness among adolescents.\u003cbr\u003e• Ninety-five percent of those who have eating disorders are between the ages of twelve and \u003cbr\u003e  twenty-five.\u003cbr\u003e• Twenty-five percent of college-aged women engage in bingeing and purging as a weight-           management technique.\u003cbr\u003e• The mortality rate associated with anorexia nervosa is twelve times higher than the death         rate associated with all other causes of death for females fifteen to twenty-four years old.6 \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e We need to wake up and realize we have a dangerous enemy \u003cbr\u003ewho has declared war on us. Jesus tells us in the gospel of John \u003cbr\u003ethat our enemy, Satan, has a purpose for our lives. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (John 10:10) \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Jesus warns us that Satan is a thief whose strategy is to steal our self-worth, kill our passion for life, and destroy our hopes and dreams. \u003cbr\u003e On the other hand, Christ has come not to steal our self-worth but to fill our self-worth. Christ has come to give us “life . . . to the full,” and that means He wants us to feel full of beauty, full of joy, full of peace, and full of value and meaning! \u003cbr\u003e The Bible also lets us know the first step in the Enemy’s strategy to steal our true beauty. He always starts with a lie. In the gospel of John, chapter 8, Jesus tells us that Satan is “a liar and the father of lies” (verse 44). \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe world’s oldest liar gets us to forget that we were God’s idea in the first place. We don’t always remember that there is a very real God on a very real throne who calls us His beloved. The slithering enemy convinces us that our Maker’s love is never enough, never was. And Satan continually asks us to consider what others are thinking of us.7 \u003cbr\u003e—\u003cb\u003eJennifer Dukes Lee \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Satan will constantly whisper destructive lies in your thoughts. They go something like this: “You’re not beautiful. You’re not valuable. You’re not worth anything.” Then he gets really specific with his lies. “You’re too fat.” “You’re too tall.” “You’re too short.” “Your hair is too dull.” “Your nose is too big.” “Your lips are too small.” “Your eyes aren’t the right color.” And the lies go on and on. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt’s all lies! If you start to believe the lies, you will base your actions and decisions on a foundation of lies and never discover your true beauty. \u003cbr\u003e But Jesus tells us the truth will set us free (see John 8:32). When we begin to believe the truth of who we really are and who God made us to be, we’ll be set free to feel beautiful. Our goal in writing Beauty Begins is to encourage all of us to stop believing the lies and to start living the truth. To be honest, we’re tired of watching a generation of beautiful young girls and women, along with their mothers, being slowly and methodically destroyed by the lies of Satan that our culture constantly tries to force on us. So let’s start with a dose of truth about what beauty really is. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBeauty begins in the heart of God, and He placed that longing for beauty in our hearts. The problem is that our culture presents a distorted view of true beauty. When we look in the broken mirror of our culture long enough, we start to believe the distorted reflection is reality. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eBeautiful Versus Pretty \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWould you rather be described as beautiful or pretty? \u003cbr\u003e Our culture has completely confused the meaning of true beauty with the concept of pretty. There’s a huge difference between beautiful and pretty. Sociologists tell us that beauty is defined differently, depending on the culture. I know what they are saying, but I think it’s pretty that means different things in different cultures. Humanity’s idea about what is pretty changes from culture to culture and is constantly changing within cultures. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt’s eye opening to take a quick skip back through history and look at the preferred shapes for women. In the Middle Ages a woman was considered pretty if she was large and pale, and she was considered very unattractive if she was thin and tan. If a woman was heavy and pale, it meant she was part of the aristocracy and had plenty of food to eat and didn’t have to work in the fields in the hot sun. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePretty in the early nineteen hundreds was a woman who was buxom and had curvy hips. The 1920s liked a trim figure that looked good in those short flapper dresses. Like the stock market, hemlines fell in the ’30s, and curvy shapes returned. This intensified in the ’40s as voluptuous was the shape to welcome home war heroes. And that shape reached a zenith in the ’50s. Think Marilyn Monroe. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe ’60s saw the miniskirt. The ’70s and ’80s were just strange. The ’90s presented the waif—popular but not healthy. And the early part of the twenty-first century promoted extreme exercise and dieting and a shape hard to attain.8 \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs the new millennium progresses, our culture’s view of pretty will continue to change, and each change has the potential to reshape the way we see ourselves—probably not for the better. \u003cbr\u003e What will the future hold for the preferred shape for women? If history tells us anything, it’s that trends don’t last long. Pretty is an ever-changing illusion that enslaves women and girls to fashion, diets, and gym memberships. Most of all, it keeps us in a constant state of discontent. The airbrushed, manipulated images in today’s magazines leave women and girls feeling hopelessly inadequate by comparison. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFashion, styles, and what we consider pretty constantly change. Beauty on the other hand is universal and never changes. Recently I (Chris) was driving home from the grocery store. As I rounded the corner, I was stopped in my tracks by real beauty. I had to pull the car over because I was looking at the most amazing sunset I had ever seen in my life. It was absolutely stunning with every color you can imagine—oranges and yellows, pinks, purples, and blues. It was so incredible I just sat there in awe taking it all in. Immediately I thought, Anybody in the entire world who saw this sunset would do what I’m doing—watching with wonder and amazement. In any country, in any culture, at any age, any person on the planet would recognize the beauty of the sunset. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhy is that? Why in different cultures do we find different things to be pretty, and yet something about raw, wild beauty transcends our differences? \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs I watched that sunset, it hit me. I saw it so clearly that for a brief moment it was as if I was no longer looking through the distorted mirror of our culture. I realized that real beauty begins with God. Therefore, something is beautiful because it has God’s fingerprints all over it. \u003cbr\u003e I couldn’t look at the brilliantly colored canvas of that evening sky without seeing the hand of the Master Artist who painted it. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe Fingerints of the Master Artist \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIf you walk through an art museum and see the beautiful paintings of the masters like Monet, Rembrandt, Renoir, and Michelangelo, you wouldn’t think, I guess someone spilled a bucket of paint on that canvas. No, you would immediately recognize that it was painted by a master artist. The fingerprints of the master artist are all over it. That’s what it was like when I looked at that sunset. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn all our lives there are moments when we catch a glimpse of raw, real beauty. It’s like a door that’s slightly open, allowing bright light to come through. We see a little crack of light, and for a second we remember what beautiful really is. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWe remember what we were created for. We remember that the One who created that sunset also created you and me. We remember that we are beautiful. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThen we forget again. We forget who created us. We forget whom we are trying to please. We forget what real beauty is. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDo you believe God sees you as beautiful? You’ll begin to feel beautiful when you start believing the truth that the Master Artist beautifully created you. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eImagine a famous painter, some fiery Italian known for his impeccably high standards. Imagine the artist has been working on a particular canvas for years. The rumor around town is that this project will be his magnum opus, his great work. You know that a creative work that’s worth anything demands the artist pour himself fully into the work. You consider all the planning and effort, the sleepless nights and grueling days that have gone into this special creation. \u003cbr\u003e Finally one day a child runs through the streets of town shouting, “It is finished! It is finished!” \u003cbr\u003eEveryone heads toward the artist’s house for the grand unveiling. But before the crowd gets a chance to see it, the artist steps back from the canvas to make his personal critique first. He stands there almost spellbound, taking in every color, every brush stroke, every nuance \u003cbr\u003eof shade and texture—everything. A tear comes to his eye as his mouth breaks into a smile, and he speaks aloud only two words: “Molto bello!” Very beautiful! \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSomething similar happened in Genesis when God unveiled His greatest creation. Far from a cold, distant watchmaker who turned a key and set everything in motion, God, as He is described in Genesis, is a very personal God who went to great pains to speak into existence and to fashion all that is, including us. When He was finished, He was infinitely pleased with the outcome. In fact, He was so pleased that He decided to stop. Nothing more was needed. No more tweaks or revisions. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe Master Artist created you and said, “You are beautiful, my child!” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut we’ve believed the lies of the Enemy. We’ve looked away from the mirror of God’s truth, and we’ve looked in the distorted mirror of our culture. We’ve broken away from the God who beautifully created us and loves us completely. Because we’ve broken away from God, we’ve become broken in the ugliness of our sins and failures. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe True Reflection \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut here’s the great news! God can take even our brokenness and turn it into beauty. \u003cbr\u003e That’s why real beauty begins at the Cross. God took the ugliest event in all history and turned it into the most beautiful act in all history. On the cross Christ took our ugliest sins, mistakes, and failures and replaced them with the beauty of forgiveness, purpose, and—one day—heaven. \u003cbr\u003eThat’s where beauty begins. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBeauty begins in a love that never ends! \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI want you to know that I don’t have it all together. I struggle just as you do to live in the truth that I’m beautiful. As we start this journey together to make peace with our reflections, I encourage you to put this scripture on your mirror and look at it every time you see yourself. The writer of Psalm 45 directs our attention to the mirror of truth. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Listen, daughter, and pay careful attention: \u003cbr\u003e Forget your people and your father’s house. \u003cbr\u003e Let the king be enthralled by your beauty; \u003cbr\u003e honor him, for he is your lord. (verses 10–11) \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I’ve had this verse on my mirror and on my desk for years because it reminds me that God is “enthralled” by my beauty! I like how the psalmist speaks directly to the bride: “Listen, daughter, and pay careful attention.” He’s saying, “Stop listening to the lies and listen to the truth! Stop looking at the distorted mirror of the culture, and look into the eyes of your King!” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe King of kings is “enthralled” by your beauty too. He is so enthralled with you that He gave up His throne in heaven to come into our broken world and win you over to Himself. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs we travel this road toward recognizing and living from our true beauty, I encourage you to spend time every day in God’s Word. At the end of each chapter is a Reflection page followed by a scripture I want you to meditate on. \u003cbr\u003e As we constantly look in the mirror of truth, we’ll see our sacred reflections more clearly, and we’ll reflect the beauty of Christ to others more consistently. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReflection \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e1. Make a list of beautiful traits you would like to build into your character. \u003cbr\u003e2. Read Psalm 45:10–11 again: “Listen, daughter, and pay careful attention: Forget your people and your father’s house. Let the king be enthralled by your beauty; honor him, for he is your lord.” Think about the truth that the God who created you is enthralled by your beauty. Write that verse on a note card or a Post-it Note, and put it on your mirror to remind yourself how beautiful you truly are. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003ePrayer \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLord, thank You for making me beautiful. I need Your help to remember that truth each day and to share it with others. The lies of the Enemy are so strong in our culture that it’s easy to forget the truth of who I am. I know real beauty begins in You, and You alone. You are the Master Artist of summer sunsets and classic symphonies and Christmas snow and me. Thank You. 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