Well, I realized it was slightly hypocritical of myself to ask you all to not be silent but remain silent myself. God has changed my life in soooo MANY ways, and, in God's perfect timing, I will tell you all of it. But, for now, God would like for me to share with you one particular change.
During a short period in high school, I believed a lie. I would look at myself in the mirror and be discontent. I didn't like who I saw. Not because of something I had done, but simply because I didn't see myself as beautiful. I allowed the lack of being told I am beautiful by my father to consume me. Because of this, I became jealous of girls who had boyfriends and I didn't. I compared myself to those girls and thought, I'm just not as pretty as they are. I didn't like what I wore, because I thought I just didn't look good in my clothes. I wore too much makeup. I tried to "cover myself up" or "fix myself" in order to attempt at being beautiful.
I realize that just about every girl goes through this stage. But I write this to you today to offer hope. Because now, when I look in the mirror, I see a beautiful creation of God. Somedays, yes, Satan still creeps in my head, but I shut him out and turn to God.
The Bible says that "God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them" (Genesis 1:27). We were all created in God's image. No one else's but His. The Bible also says, "The king is enthralled by your beauty; honor him; for he is your lord" (Psalm 45:11). So not only do we look like God, who is the epitome of beauty, but He is enthralled by how beautiful we are. When we look in the mirror, we shouldn't see a simple person, we should see a beautiful creation of God. We should see God staring right back at us.
When I went on a mission trip to Miami, I got to share this portion of my story with a five-year-old girl. She never told me her story, but that didn't deter me from what I felt led to tell her. I told her how absolutely beautiful she is in the eyes of God. I told her how I overcome the lie of being "ugly" and how I still overcome it each day. She was so amazed and her eyes lit up before me. She had a smile on her face knowing I cared for her enough to share this with her. The smile on her face also came from finally knowing she's beautiful. I can't even begin to tell you how much joy I felt in my heart from telling her this.
You see, what Satan means for harm, God will turn it around for His glory. Satan tried to make me believe I wasn't beautiful. And I believed him for a bit. That was until God reminded me of who He is and who I am in Him. I went through that stage of my life, so I could tell that little girl how beautiful she is. And, believe me, it was soooo worth it.
So, I no longer look in the mirror and turn away. I look in the mirror and see God staring right back at me. I am beautiful. And, so are you. :]
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