As a younger girl, I would walk through the hallways at school and begin to compare every ounce of my being to those around me. They had prettier hair, prettier bodies, and were just out right prettier than me. Self-esteem comes to mind. Pushing the horrible thoughts of myself to the back of my mind didn't seem to work.

That's when it all started. I began thinking and saying that I was ugly.

Ugly.

What a word. You gotta give it credit though. It can describe nearly anything that isn't pleasant to you personally. It can describe that dog you just saw, or the naked cat that lives down the street. It can simply describe someone's personality, or the food you see on your plate. Such an easy four letter word to throw around.

That's exactly where I got caught. It was so easy to describe myself in this manner and to push that off on others also. It was easy to say that every different place on my body was ugly. My face, hair, stomach, legs, and even my feet. You name it, it was ugly. And realizing that other people weren't perfect forced me to think some of those things were ugly on them also. Even though it was rare for me to think other people were ugly, it happened.

One day, I looked in the mirror, negative thoughts rushing to my mind and it hit me. How can I call something the Creator made ugly?

In Genesis, there is talk about how God made everything. He starts with light, and then the sky. I look at these things and think of how great they make life and how sometimes they can put the world in awe. Creating such a beautiful day. God made the land and vegetation next. Landscapes that take your breath away come to mind. Even in Indiana where there are corn fields everywhere, beauty can be found. On the 4th day, God created the sun, moon and stars. Who doesn't marvel at those? On the 5th and 6th days, God made the wild animals, birds, and sea creatures. All of which are unique in their own ways and create such wonder in our minds. During the first six days of creation, God looked back and saw that His work was all good!

On the 7th day, God created man. He created man in His image. He made man a reflection of His own self. He then looked back and said that we were very good. Wow.

God tells us that we are very good. We are more beautiful than the birds and creatures of the sea. We are better than the landscape and the sunsets we claim are so wonderful. We are a greater example of who God is than the light itself, that allows us to see and witness God's creation.

Again I ask, Who am I to call something the Creator made ugly?

I have since then grown a lot in my self-esteem. Seeing as how insulting myself is insulting the beauty of God's creation. I found my identity and beauty in Christ, and all of these events have encouraged me to get rid of the word ugly from my vocabulary.

Although I have said it more than enough in this article, I normally do not call anything ugly. Not the cat down the street, not a random raccoon, not the boy who was mean to me, not a picture in the store, and most importantly, not myself. Ugly has been removed from my own personal dictionary. It does not have a place in my life.

I encourage you, if you struggle with finding beauty within yourself, ask for God's help. He will reveal to you that He has made everything beautiful! That means YOU.

YOU are beautiful.

Join me. Remove Ugly from your dictionary!

"Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight." 1 Peter 3:3-4