After a summer of relaxation and perhaps a little too much time in the sun, make-up artist Amy Dyas found herself rethinking more than just her skincare routine. Could the same gentle, consistent approach we take to restoring our skin after a holiday also help us get back on track with God?
I wonder if, like me, you are currently wondering why it feels like a million years since your summer holiday?! A week in the sun is over and done far too quickly and very soon we find ourselves slotting back into our day-to-day routines. Thankfully we are left with the memories we make and we have those to keep a smile on our face. Sadly though, beautiful memories of a warm yellow marble in the sky radiating heat down on us are not the only thing we are left with.
That beautiful prism of light can actually cause us more harm than good and I have to say, now that I am into my fifth decade here on this earth, I definitely feel that the sunshine I have spent so much of my life basking in has certainly left its mark on me more judgmentally than usual this summer!
READ MORE: Life Lessons: Come for the skincare, stay for the heartcare
As a makeup artist and skincare expert I very much know the drill – SPF, floppy hat, big shades and limit my time in direct sun.
As a makeup artist and skincare expert I very much know the drill – SPF, floppy hat, big shades and limit my time in direct sun. Yet nevertheless I love the sun. I love how it makes me feel sleepy and soothed. I love that it makes my thoughts disappear and turns them to mush, but most of all, I love how my body relaxes in its rays. So, whilst I do all the things I can to be safe, I nevertheless overindulge and over-snooze in the lush warmth. In the past this would have burned my fair skin, but my aging layers have somewhat acclimatised to UV rays and now it just dries it out and makes me a bit biscuity!
This year, when I returned home from holiday I realised that I needed to change my skincare routine. I stripped all the serums lining my bathroom cabinet back and turned to a much simpler and gentler approach.
Normally I would have a number of steps taking me from my cleanser to my final oil of the day. I mix them up and have a slightly different routine each day to keep my skin on its toes! Right now though my skin needs nourishment. It needs the damaged layers gently removing and layers of moisture to drink up, which means I am currently a four-step routine kinda-gal: cleanse, exfoliate, moisturise, oil.
READ MORE: As Christians we can talk like beauty is a bad thing, but here’s why I think that’s wrong
As I started this new approach it made me think about consistency and how I am not very good at it.
As I started this new approach it made me think about consistency and how I am not very good at it. It takes a lot of work and remembering (not my finest skill) and I started to reflect on my relationship with God. How often do I overindulge in sin? In the things that are not good for me but which feel enticing and dazzling and so I submit to their rays because they make me sleepy and soothed? I realised that in the same way I am choosing to slough off my dry and dead skin, I should be using the same approach in my spiritual life.
Sometimes God moves radically and healing or answered prayer happens very quickly, but there are often times when it’s in the waiting, with patience and methodical diligence, that spiritual transformation takes place. It can happen in a simple routine of reading the Bible (just a few verses to ponder even), listening to a worship song and lifting up a prayer.
READ MORE: Discovering ‘clean beauty’
I think in times when we feel like we have overindulged or fallen away, we can end up with a knee-jerk reaction to fix it and sign up to every Bible app and reading plan we can, only to find it hard to stick to. What if we started with just ten minutes a day? And then, with time and consistency, build it up, and allow God’s roots to grow deep and strong with the commitment we show Him each day. If I am willing to put this effort into my skincare routine, then how much more does my heavenly Father and Saviour deserve from me?
Amy’s Top Tip: You can always achieve a gentle exfoliation by using a face cloth to wash your face each day. As it is gentle it needs consistency! If you are looking for a new product then I would recommend Emiko Skincare’s Yuzu scrub which I stock at my online clean beauty store.
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