Who wins the “Miss Heaven” pageant?
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Did you watch the Miss America pageant? Nina Davuluri, Miss New York, is the new Miss America. She is the first woman of Indian descent to ever win the title. I actually watched the broadcast because I thought I might want to write a blog post on the subject. After watching the broadcast, I realized I didn’t care that much about the subject. So why am I writing this post anyway? The reason: I’m confused and a little curious.
I don’t really understand the whole pageant business. The point of the competition is to determine which of the women is the most beautiful, talented, poised and popular – and then give her a crown and multiple public appearances for the coming year. This achievement is supposed to bring her a lifetime of success and acclaim in exchange for her being a good will ambassador for the country. Raise your hand if you remember who won the past three Miss America titles? I’m not sure their plan is working.
And what about Miss USA? I don’t understand the difference between the two competitions. Which queen is considered to be more beautiful than the other? Now you understand my confusion. Who decides what is beautiful and what is not? What is talent and what is not? (I might have a opinion on that. There were a few “off-key” moments during the evening!) What should be our definition of beautiful? And, how does our definition match God’s definition? Who would win the “Miss Heaven” pageant?
The first thing I know is that there would be NO bathing suit competition in the Miss Heaven pageant. 1 Timothy 2:9 says that,”women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control…” The pageant contestants STARVED themselves before the bathing suit competition. They sprayed what they referred to as “butt glue” on their backsides to hold their bikinis in place and then tried to walk the runway in sparkly high heels, holding their breath and smiling like they were on their way to a beach party. I don’t think they would have dressed like that for the Miss Heaven pageant. I think we would wear robes and walk bare-footed on a solid gold runway. Our robes would emit a light that no amount of earthly sequins could compare to. And every robe is as beautiful and perfect as the next.
The Miss America contestants spent a fortune on hair, make-up, trainers, and evening gowns and then tried to convince us they were in the pageant for “scholarship money.” (Which is only for the winners, by the way.) Then, when one of the 50+ women is crowned, she is labeled the most beautiful woman in the country. Nina Davuluri is beautiful – but so was every contestant I saw. Who would be considered the “most beautiful” women in heaven? Here are a few hints:
Isaiah 52:7 – “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.” If you share your faith with someone, you have entered the Miss Heaven pageant.
Proverbs 31:30 – “Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” Won’t it be amazing to live in a place where a person is praised and considered beautiful because they love and revere the Lord?
1 Samuel 16:7 – “For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” Remember when your mom said, “Pretty is as pretty does?” And what about, “It doesn’t matter what you look like if you are not pretty on the inside.” (Could someone who knows Miley Cyrus send her that verse?) But then again, we all need to hear that verse. Women spent more than 8 billion dollars on cosmetics last year in the United States. More than 10 billion dollars was spent on cosmetic surgical procedures. (But Debby Boone’s lifestyle lift really does look good!) The Miss Heaven pageant, however, will be won by someone who is absolutely beautiful…on the inside.
I will conclude with one of my new, favorite verses in the Bible. Philippians 3:20-21 – “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.” I would never have won a Miss America pageant, even on my best day. But I want to try to compete in that Miss Heaven Pageant. I hear that everyone who enters has a transformed, perfected, glorious body. Every contestant is beautiful – on the inside and the outside. And the best news of all…EVERYONE gets a crown.
I’ll see you all on the runway! (No high heels necessary.)
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