Encouragement

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C S Lewis once said, ‘Some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again.’ I reckon I’ve come of age. So with this in mind and the adage that the best children’s stories are the ones that are not just for children, I have been pondering the message concealed on the pages of ‘The Ugly Duckling’ by Hans Christian Anderson. There is always something deeper to be discovered if we ruminate around for long enough.

The ugly duckling struggled to know who he truly was because others kept it from him. It was the voice of the duckling’s tormentors that held him bound in a prison called ‘ugliness, uselessness and worthlessness.’ If he didn’t look the same as the others, that is, not soft, downy and sweet yellow, he was ugly. If he didn’t behave the same as the others, that is, didn’t walk with style, swagger and assurance, he was useless. And if he didn’t know as much as the others, not learned and wise, he was worthless. To top it off he was just too different, so was never welcome wherever he went.

The duckling’s aggressors had formed an image of him and he heard it so often that it became true. The real ugly duckling was made to be ugly and would amount to nothing. End of story. Or perhaps not….

The duckling grew up. The voices that had shaped his identity subsided and he found himself alone, older, perhaps wiser and ready to find a new truth, longing for a new truth. The once ugly duckling with feathers all downy and brown had been transformed into a snow white swan. He was caught by surprise and disbelief at his beautiful reflection in the still lake.

When God whispers that we are beautiful, how do we respond? Do we scoff or longing to believe something more, are we filled with awe and joy and say hopefully, ‘Really Lord, could it be that I am precious and special?’ Can we claim with confidence our beauty, our worth, our choseness as one of His privileged children?’

We are each on a journey discovering who we really are. Underneath the layers of awkwardness and ordinariness is a beautiful person created to live in their fullness. Hiding inside is a unique person who is designed to be someone special and do something special with their life. Our inner beauty, made in the image of God cries to come out, to be spoken, to claim who we really are. And that beautiful unique self, longs to bring blessing to others, just as the swan blessed all who gazed upon him.

Only as we gaze upon Divine Beauty Himself and ponder His promises in Scripture are we changed bit by bit to reflect the beauty of our true selves, that is, the image of God within. We cannot begin to dream of what lays locked inside, waiting to emerge and become the expression of the beautiful person that God created us to be.

Reflective Moments

Have I, like the swan come to a full realization of who I really am?
Who do I listen to and what are they telling me about myself? What have I chosen to believe?
What holds me back from using the gifts I have been given to bring blessing to others? Taking these conversations to God letting Him speak to me about who I really am.

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