Jennifer Strickland - Pretty from the Inside Out: Discover All the Ways God Made You Special

HARVEST HOUSE PUBLISHERS

EUGENE, OREGON

All Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Cover by Left Coast Design, Portland, Oregon

Cover photo Shutterstock / Monkey Business Images

Backcover author photo by Natasha Brown Photography (www.natashabrownphoto.com)

Published in association with the literary agency of WordServe Literary Group, Ltd., www.wordserveliterary.com.

PRETTY FROM THE INSIDE OUT

Copyright 2015 Jennifer Strickland Ministries, Inc.

Published by Harvest House Publishers

Eugene, Oregon 97402

www.harvesthousepublishers.com

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Strickland, Jennifer, author.

Pretty from the inside out / Jennifer Strickland.

pages cm

Summary: Youre not a little girl anymore, and youd love to start wearing makeup and pretty clothes, getting guys to notice you But hang on a sec, girl! Before you get all made up, you need to make sure you know what it really means to be pretty. Pretty is the light you shine through your service the way you show gentleness, humility, and respect how you act when no one is watching. Jennifer Strickland used to be a model, and she knows that real prettiness comes from the heart. Join her on a journey of discovering true beautythe beauty of a beloved daughter of God! Provided by publisher.

Audience: Ages 8-11.

ISBN 978-0-7369-5634-5 (pbk.)

ISBN 978-0-7369-5635-2 (eBook)

1. GirlsConduct of lifeJuvenile literature. 2. GirlsReligious lifeJuvenile literature. 3. Self-esteem in childrenReligious aspectsChrisitianityJuvenile literature. 4. Self-perceptionJuvenile literature. I. Title.

BV4551.3.S78 2015

248.8'2dc23

2014028186

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For Olivia,

Our beloved daughter.

You are beautiful to me.

Even though lots of people poured love, hard work, and prayers into this book, I really just want to thank my husband, Shane, and our children, Olivia, Zach, and Samuel, for making it possible for me to be a wife and mom and at the same time an author and speaker. They have given up a lot of time with me so you can hold this book in your hands.

Theyve done this because they believe that aside from being a mother, Im also meant to be a voice for Christ. On this page, I just want to thank them from the bottom of my heart for their love and sacrifice. Without knowing it, they have taught me the real meaning of beauty and opened my eyes to the wonder of the Father, who bestows upon us every good and perfect gift.

My sweet family is the good and perfect gift God gave me and continues to give me every day.

I hope this book blesses them in every way possible.

Contents

W ho am I? As girls, that is the number-one question of our lives. Are you what people think about you? Are you what you see in the mirror? Are you the image in your pictures? Is your value decided by magazines, or even windows on a screen that disappear with a click?

Or are you worth more ? Whether you are an actress, a singer, a dancer, an athlete, an artist, a cheerleader, or you arent sure what you are good at yet, you are more than what meets the eye. You are more than what people think about you. More than the reflection in the mirror. More than what magazines say. You are Gods beloved daughter, and he has great dreams for your life.

The problem with us girls is we have a tendency to measure our value by what we can see instead of by what we cant see. When a girl walks into a room, we start measuring her up. How is she different from me? Is she better than me? Do people like her more? we might ask. Or if its a boy, Does he notice me? Does he see me, the real me?

As girls, sometimes we look in the mirror and see only the pimple on our face or the way our jeans dont fit or the stringy hair that we wish were curly or curly hair we wish we could tame. Maybe someone has pointed out our flaws or told us we werent prettyor told us we wereand we believed what they said about us. Maybe people have liked our pictures or criticized them, and we are starting to analyze them too. Or maybe we cant help but compare ourselves to the stars on TV and wish we looked like them or had all they seem to have. If you took a survey of every girl on earth, you would find out we have all battled with these things and fought to find our own identity.

This book is about that battle, and I want to help you win the war of who you are! Well talk about five lies about your value, and then well learn to replace those pretty little lies with the big beautiful truths about who you really are and how valuable you are to God. These truths are like jewels in your crown that point to your true beauty, worth, and purpose.

At the end of each chapter, youll find messages from the Bible that will help you pave a beautiful pathway for your life with those precious jewels. My goal is to help you see yourself in the reflection of Gods mirror. Why? Because Gods mirror is the only mirror that never changes.

Before you get out of bed in the morning or go to sleep at night, take time to read a few of these pages so that you can be reminded of your worth from Gods eyes.

Life is a journey. It doesnt start when you get through junior high, go to high school or college, or have a family of your own. Your life begins now, and the choices you make today will determine the kind of life you have later!

No matter how busy you are, giving God the gift of your time is a gift you give to yourself. Ask him to pour truth into your heartbeautiful truth! As you go, when you discover little gems in the book that sparkle for you, mark them! Youll be able to look back later and see the valuable jewels God paved into your pathway when you were a girl.

I believe in you, Im cheering for you, and I hope you see my love on every page.

Your friend,

Jen

Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

(Proverbs 4:23)

I used to think life started with the prince, but now I know I was a princess from the beginning.

A Man or a Mirror?