Tammi's Treasures
Monthly Column by Tammi Rhoney

Our culture today is fixated on outward appearances. Hollywood and the Holy Word’s definition of feminine beauty definitely conflict. The female stars we see on TV or in the movies seem to all have the Paris Hilton look: tall, thin, blond hair, way too much makeup and immodestly dressed. Sadly, even Christian women today are just as guilty as non-Christians when it comes to emphasizing the outward, not the inward, and I am guilty as well. There is so much emphasis put on what we look like on the outside, that we often forget that we should be cultivating our inner beauty or Christ-likeness daily.

One of my favorite Scripture passages is 1 Peter 3:3-4 which says, “Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, 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.” In other words, we are not to be preoccupied with our outward appearance, as the pagans were, but modesty in dress is emphasized so that our inner self outshines our outer self. God is not as concerned with our outward appearance as much as our inner attitude, and our attitude is often reflected in the way we dress. There is nothing wrong with looking neat, nice and attractive, but we must ask ourselves, “Do we spend more time in the morning in Bible reading and prayer or standing in front of the mirror applying our
makeup?” In all honesty, I’m sure most of us would say we spend much more time getting made up than prayed up.

A few years ago, in a still small voice, the Holy Spirit made me aware that my inner beauty was in dire need of a face-lift. The fruits of the spirit qualities found in Galatians 5:22-23 such as love, joy, peace, patience and kindness were sadly missing from my life. To give you a little of my history, I am forty-four years old and have suffered with an illness called Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (or “CFIDS”) for fourteen years. In 1998-99, I had three miscarriages in thirteen months, overdid in the fall and suffered my second severe relapse, which lasted six years. Initially, I was so sick that I had to crawl around our home for ten months wearing my husband’s red soccer kneepads so my knees could survive the rug burns. I also spent sixteen months in a wheelchair, unable to walk in and out of my doctor’s office. My days consisted of getting up, getting dressed and crawling to my living room couch. Thankfully, in 2001, God opened the door for me to be in a drug study at my doctor’s office in Charlotte with the experimental drug Ampligen, which I continued taking for three years. When I began Ampligen, I was around ten percent functioning ability. Today, by God’s mercy and grace, I am about seventy percent of my normal energy level, but am still more limited in walking and attending activities than I would like.

Being so sick and limited made me a very unhappy camper. I told my husband that nothing brings out my sins in all of their ugliness like a chronic illness. Once the Holy Spirit showed me the depth of my sinfulness, the first step in cultivating my inner beauty began with serious repentance before God. I asked Him to cleanse me of my specific sins and change me into the Godly wife and Christian that He would have me to be. Slowly, over the past few years, I have felt God changing me and sanding off some of my rough edges. Of course, change is not instant and the process of sanctification will continue throughout my lifetime. I still complain and get frustrated because I can’t attend some activities or accomplish everything I would like to get done, but I know the Holy Spirit is at work in me daily. I am confident “that He who began a good work in me will complete it until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:6). It’s comforting to know that “the Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7, NIV). What does God see when He looks at your heart?

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About the Author: Tammi has suffered with the debilitating illness known as Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (or “CFIDS”) for almost fifteen years. She is an on-line devotional writer for Rest Ministries. When able, she enjoys swimming, sewing, writing and traveling. Tammi’s passion is encouraging others with chronic illnesses to draw closer to Jesus Christ and find hope and strength in Him. Take a minute to visit her website at www.lordhelpmyhusband.com.