Looking for Hotties?

On a retreat recently (with amazingly holy Catholic young women!), I said something that shocked me - I told them I was looking for a hot guy in my life.

Now, I know in our culture, when we hear the words, “hot guy”, our mind immediately goes to Brad Pitt or Matthew McConaughey. Mine, too, usually. In fact, morals aside, most of us are even good at playing the “Hot or Not” TV game show – whether on TV or in real life. Being a child of the 80’s and a fairly normal American, I fit into this pack. And, although I will admit this part of me exists, I am certainly not proud of it.

In the last few years, I’ve really been challenged to see the holiness in Christian guys as their most attractive characteristic. Last year, I was most impressed by a good friend who, when asked which guy she most liked among a big group of friends, said, “I’m just so attracted to any guys who are holy!” I was floored to hear this come from such a physically gorgeous woman. She was like Shallow Hal under the spell. As Hal saw women’s inner beauty as physical beauty, my friend saw men’s spiritual depth as physically attractive. The physical appearance was reflective of the soul, and a soul filled with Christ was the most attractive thing to her. Wow - how amazing, and a good challenge for me.

So, back to my story. On this women’s retreat, something I said revealed to me that God has made progress in changing my heart. I said I’m looking for a hot guy - and I immediately added that to me “hot” means “on fire for Christ”. Now, strong faith has always been extremely important to me, but I’ve never said or even really thought about it this way before. This may not seem like a huge revelation to you, but it was a cool moment for me. I’m not saying that physical chemistry isn’t important for a romantic relationship – of course it is. I’m just now redefining what I find to be especially attractive, what makes someone a hottie - it’s really a “hot” soul.

Consider your friends, co-workers, youth group members and classmates. When you look at them, think of this – if their physical appearance reflected the condition of their soul, who would be a hottie?