The story of the Ugly Ducking is fairly familiar. A nest full of ducklings hatches, and much to the surprise of the mother, one of them is bigger and uglier than all the others. He is teased and taunted and finally leaves the flock. After spending the winter alone and cold, he notices swans flying up above and decides to fly with them. They all land on a lake and the ugly duckling looks down and discovers his own reflection, which reveals to him that he is also a swan. That's the gist of it at least- read the whole thing if you're unfamiliar with the story.
If I'm remembering correctly, the speaker in church used this to relate to our need to have courage, to realize that we are more than just an ugly duckling. I think he mentioned several times that we should remember we are swan-lings. That's what was said. Here's what I heard...
We all have those difficult moments, sometimes it is caused by our internal conflicts, other times it is caused by what people say. The point is, we all have those moments where we feel ugly, insignificant, and unimportant. In those moments, we can step back and remind ourselves that we are not ducks. Yes, it is true that we start off little and adorable. We grow up and go through that phase where we are incurably awkward and feel like we are waddling about making stupid noises whenever we hope to be graceful and elegant. But still, we are not ducks. We were never meant to be ducks.
You are a child of God. You are filled with divinity, and only struggle to see it because you are still young, like a "swan-ling." But someday, you shall return to God's presence. He will embrace you as your father, who has long awaited your return. In his arms, your feelings of doubt, self-consciousness, and insecurity will disappear. You will look up and discover your reflection in his eyes. It will reveal to you that you are glorious, it will reveal that you are incredible, and you will realize that you are seeing yourself as He has always seen you. You were never meant to be a duck.
