By Guest Writer, Sarah Cook, who will be presenting in our Back to the Basics of Life Seminar Series this Tuesday, October 20, at 8 pm CST / 9 pm EST / 6 pm PST on Healthy Skin & Radiant Beauty

7 Skin Care Tips to Keep Acne Away

I remember my hard tween years when I first started experiencing acne before anyone else in my class. It was awkward, uncomfortable and downright embarrassing. Even now, “thanks” to my Dad’s genes I still occasionally battle the unsightly zits that randomly appear on my face. I am so grateful that for the last 16 years I have used exceptional skin care that has not only helped heal and prevent blemishes but has also helped me reduces and even eliminate past scarring from deep acne damage. Let me share with you some simple tips I use to keep my skin as flawless and blemish free as possible.

Tip 1: AM/PM Power Play

Wash your face in the morning and night but not more than three times a day with warm water and a gentle cleanser. Do not use soap as they often have ingredients which strip your skin of hydration. This can cause your skin to overcompensate by producing more oil which can actually make the problem worse. Gently massage your face with circular motions but never scrub which can cause the skin to be irritated. After cleansing, the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) recommends applying an over-the-counter (no prescription needed) lotion containing benzyol peroxide. This will decrease oil and bacteria.

Tip 2: Don’t Pop It!

I know it’s tempting! I wanted to do it myself on many occasions but here’s why it isn’t a good idea. Popping pimples can push infected material further into the skin. It can also cause more swelling and redness, bleeding, and even scarring.

Tip 3: Hands off!

Not only is it bad for you to have your hands on your faces other things can pose a problem too. Your fingers and objects like cell phones and glasses collect sebum, skin residue and bacteria. Touching your face can spread the bacteria and dirt that may cause pores to become inflamed and irritated. Always be sure to wash your hands before you apply any treatments or makeup to your face.

Tip 4: Body Breakouts

Allow your skin to breathe by wearing clothes that aren’t too tight. It is a good idea to stay away from scarves, headbands, and hats and ball caps, which can collect dirt and oil, too. If you really want to wear them be sure that you wash them after each use.

Tip 5: Sleeping Beauty Never Sleeps in Makeup!

Remove your makeup before you go to sleep. When buying makeup, make sure you choose brands that say “noncomedogenic” on the label. Another important point to make is to be sure the products you purchase are 100% guaranteed. There is nothing worse than being stuck with a product that doesn’t work and wasting your money. Throw away old makeup that smells or looks different from when you first bought it.

Tip 6: Keep it UP and Clean

Keep hair clean by washing it daily and out of your face to prevent additional dirt and oil from clogging your pores. I recommend that hair always be put up when you sleep at night so you are sure that it isn’t all over you when you sleep.

Tip 7: Full Spectrum Protection

I can’t stress enough the value of a full-spectrum skin care product that protects your skin from both UVA and UVB ray sun damage. A tan may seem to mask acne, but it’s only temporary. A tan can cause the body to produce extra sebum, which may worsen your acne, not improve it. Tanning also causes damage to skin that will eventually lead to wrinkles and increase your risk of skin cancer.

So there you have it, 7 quick tips to help you achieve a flawless face without the use of any makeup. If you have further questions, be sure to contact me. I would love to be of service. Have a “beautiful” day because you are!

Sarah Cook has worked on a volunteer basis for over 18 years in the children’s, youth, and women’s ministries at her church. For the last 15 years, Sarah has enjoyed being a mentor and coach to hundreds of women in and out of her direct sales skin care and cosmetics organization.

Sarah can be best described as upbeat, passionate, and engaging. She graduated with a BA in Family Studies from Utah State University and has been married to her husband Jerry for 16 years. Together they have 3 children, Jacob, Clarissa and Jonathan. Sarah enjoys home-schooling their oldest two children and spending time with her family.

“Good night, sweet dreams, I love you!”

These have been our closing words at tuck-in time for a while now. I remember them from my own childhood and never meant to carry on that tradition, but somehow, after being said a few times, the mantra stuck. This comforting night-time phrase is just one of the many thoughts and gestures of love that were shown to me by my parents and that I strive to pass on to my children. However, my parents also passed along to me many things that are distinctly unloving: criticism, anger, selfishness—you name it! All of these are things that Jesus Christ has been able to change in me, and I now want to pass along to my children a legacy of faith that includes the value of love—the true love which is only found through our Lord and Savior.

It has occurred to me, though, that no matter how important it is to say the words, “I love you,” it’s even more important to live them. We’d all agree that that’s true—but when it comes down to it, how well do we live out the love of God? Not our understanding of love, but the unconditional and selfless love that Jesus modeled for us.

In Jesus’ own words, “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). I don’t think He was just referring to His own physical death, but also to the way He “lay down his life” on a daily basis—giving up what He wanted and, instead, doing what was needed for those He loved. He gave up sleep, food, career, family relationships, and more, all to show us the way to eternal life and abundant life.

When I compare that standard to what I evidence to my children on a consistent basis, it’s easy to see how often I fall short of God’s ideal in living out a life of love. As I recall one mother writing (and unfortunately, I don’t remember the source), “Being a mother showed me how selfish I truly was.” How true! So often, we’d rather do what’s convenient for us, instead of what’s best for our children and family. We pursue our own agendas and schedules instead of prayerfully following along with God’s plans. We talk of love, but in the next breath we’re responding harshly to a child’s repeated questions.

If we want to raise spiritually fit children who love the Lord as we do, we’ve got to know the love of God and share it with our children. We do this best by showing them physical affection, sharing words of affirmation, performing acts of service, sometimes giving them small gifts or treats, and spending quality time with them. (Gary Chapman and Ross Campbell do a fine job of describing all of these facets of love in The Five Love Languages of Children.) Aside from modeling this value as the best method of teaching it to our children, there are some other practical things we should address in order to provide them with a solid foundation in Christlike character.

Though children may receive our love and be able to express love to others, they may have difficulty grasping the concept of “loving God,” since they cannot see or touch him. It is important, then, that in addition to all the other aspects of “love,” we help our children understand how we love God.

Ultimately, our love for God is expressed by our obedience to his Word. Jesus told his disciples, “Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me” (John 14:21; see also John 14:15). Therefore, it’s important for us to spend time in the Word so that we know what it is God wants us to do. This may include personal reading, listening to Bible teachings, participating in a Bible study, or reading Bible-based books. However, there is no substitute for simply reading the Bible.

It is important, also, that we pray. We can both speak to God and hear from Him in the quietness of prayer. We are admonished to “pray continually” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). A constant thought-life of prayer keeps us focused on the Lord, makes us more aware of his presence, and draws us closer to him. Isn’t that what a love relationship is all about?

By encouraging the habits of Bible-reading and prayer (and obedience to the Word) in our children and guiding them in an understanding of how these actions express their love for God, we are laying the foundation for their lifetime love relationship with the Lord.

Love is just one of the many values that God values—one of the many character traits that He wants to grow in us as we follow Christ. As parents, it’s our job to show this love and encourage our children to express it as well. Though that may seem obvious, it’s important to remember that love isn’t just something that we “do”—it’s a fruit of the Spirit (see Galatians 5:22). While we do need to do our part in expressing love, we can’t live the love of God without allowing Him to work in and through us by the power of the Holy Spirit. So, as you teach your children to read and obey the Word and pray, make sure you’re praying—it’s one of the most powerful tools in your parenting toolbox: “be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God… And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests” (Ephesians 6:10-11a and 18).

Cynthia Carrier is the homeschooling mom of seven children and author of The Growing Homeschool: Integrating Babies and Toddlers into Your Already Busy Schedule and the children’s character training coloring book, Growing to be Like Jesus. She has been a popular speaker at homeschool conventions and events. The focus of Marc and Cindy’s “Values-Driven” ministry is to encourage and equip Christian families to make the most of every opportunity; that is, to serve God, participate in fulfilling the Great Commission, and raise children who love and serve the Lord. For more information about their resources, for fresh inspiration on your family journey, or to find practical helps-including dozens of FREE DOWNLOADS, visit http://www.ValuesDrivenFamily.com.

Photo credit: SXC

This post was originally published by Sisterlisa Growing in Grace Magazine on June 1, 2009.  Sisterlisa is one of the speakers for our upcoming Back to the Basics of Life Seminar Series.  Please sign up for the series here. Enjoy SisterLisa’s article below:

Over the years we have seen friendships come and go and most of those times it has been painful. I have seen friends move on in ministry and move away to fulfill God’s plan for their lives and although I was happy for them, my heart grieved over the thought of not fellowshipping with them as often anymore. I have had times when I volunteered in church nursery with other women that I grew quite close to. Then a ministry change happens and that intimate fellowship gets interrupted. I have learned through the years that what we do for the Lord may not always be what He wants for us for a lifetime, but rather for a season.

Something that my family has come to understand in a deeper more intense way is that The Body is not a one denomination inclusive group. In the Rescue Ministry we serve the Lord in, we have had great opportunities to meet fantastic Believers in a variety of church fellowships.

My husband has surrendered to the Lord to travel with this ministry to help introduce the kind of help we offer at The Well Ministry of Rescue and The Sarah Home for Women. This journey for us has been an amazing one, to say the least. We are still just at the beginning of this journey, but watching the Lord open doors that were firmly shut for ten years, suddenly become wide open and has been triumphant!

Although this journey for us is exciting, I was made aware of the feelings that others feel about our decision. The Holy Spirit reminded me of what it was like for me when friends moved on in the past. A dear sweet friend of mine came to me in tears over us going in this direction, because this journey involves us not being in the same fellowship as often as before. She told me how she is sad, but happy at the same time and it became evident to me how much she truly loves me. I had not known she had such a deep abiding love for our friendship.

Yet, not everyone has come to us with those same feelings. Most people don’t like change, especially a change that comes between the frequency of those sweet fellowship times. I have seen over the years that many people don’t quite know how to respond. Some show angry emotions, some critical and judgmental, and some don’t seem to show any response at all. Perhaps they just don’t know what to think or how to feel about it.

The fellowship that we won’t be frequenting as often, is one that involves hundreds of people and there is no way we can adequately keep in touch with each family individually. Yet there are networking opportunities to all of us on the internet that makes it a lot easier to keep in touch.

There are some people who are reluctant to logging into a social network like Facebook or Twitter, but are two that we enjoy and know how to use in a safe manner. Some people choose to build blogs or message board forums to get all the latest updates on friends and family. I feel these are good ways to keep in touch with The Body all over the world.

Our family has been so blessed in so many different ways by our Father since we responded to the Lord in the calling He has given to us. While this is an exciting time for us we do not want to lose touch with the Body of Believers we fellowshipped with for fourteen years and we want to keep in touch with the other Believers we are finding along the way. Social Networking on the internet is NO replacement for fellowship in person, but it sure helps keep the lines of communication open and keep each other up to date on prayer requests and praise reports!

We have come to understand more deeply that The Body is not limited to one building in one corner of town, but rather all over the globe. I feel that many times we get tunnel vision, in our busy lives, and forget the rest of The Body that is living all around us. Denominations sure have come to build up brick walls all around us and have kept us apart for so long. I came to discover that there are no denominations in the Bible.

1 Corinthians 1:11-13, ” 11For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you. 12Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. 13Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul? “(KJV)

I think I knew that already, but it became very evident to me recently.

1 Peter 2:5, “Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.” (Geneva Bible 1599)

We may not like the same meals, but one day we will feast together with the Father around His table and the choices between enchiladas and cheeseburgers won’t even matter. Let’s not forget the rest of The Body. We are everywhere! Don’t forget The Body, we all matter in God’s eyes.

2 Peter 3:9, “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; 9 but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”(Geneva Bible 1599)

Sisterlisa is the owner and Editor-in-Chief of Growing in Grace Magazine and owner of AGMinistries, a devotion blog for women. She is married and homeschools her four children while remaining active in serving the Lord in her community.