I was born in Southern California where beauty is at the top of most women's priority list. Both of my parents graduated from Hollywood High School. My Dad was a popular disc jockey, always surrounded by beautiful women. My mom was a beauty queen and singer who had her own TV show in Los Angeles. She left people speechless when she walked into a room. I was destined from day one to fall into "Barbie Bondage". You know what I mean…that "oh, so perfect, perky, fashionably correct, irresistibly thin, radiantly beautiful doll" who doesn't even have to move her lusciously, pouty, plastic lips to tell every little girl what "beauty" is supposed to look like.

Before I ever made it to high school, I figured I could never measure up to my mother's beauty and my father's popularity, so I gradually got more and more depressed and soon found myself walking down a dangerous road to self-destruction. Aside from a few loser friends, my only companions were loneliness, drugs and, of course, food…and lots of it.

One of the lowest points of my life was when I couldn't find a date to the prom, so I paid my best friend's brother to take me. I was sixty pounds overweight and he didn't want to be seen with me, but he couldn't pass up the offer. I'll never forget that miserable, embarrassing night! As a teen, I was sure that happiness was only for the beautiful and successful…the "Barbies." This lie was whispered to me every time I looked in a mirror, or read a magazine, or watched TV. I heard it over and over…and I bought it.

What is it about beauty that is so desirable to us that we're willing to give up who we are on the inside to perfect what we look like on the outside? Why is it when we look at beautiful girls we feel their image is always what we're NOT and just beyond our reach. Many of us have paid a high price in pursuit of physical perfection (our health, happiness, friendships, even peace of mind). Even if we accomplish perfecting our outer image what did we really get? That beautiful outfit we thought we'd never fit into? The envy of all the girls? The looks of lust from boys?

Is it really five more pounds and more money to shop that will make us feel good about ourselves? The truth is, how we feel about ourselves will affect every area of our life. The Bible tells us to love our neighbor as ourselves, but many of us don't love ourselves. Even the most beautiful women in the world see themselves as "not good enough", "not pretty enough", "not thin enough", "not talented enough". Where are we getting these mixed up, messed up messages? Who are we trying so hard to impress?

There is nothing wrong with looking our best and striving to be the best we can be, but the problem comes when we feel that what God created us to be is not good enough. We let what we're NOT, stop us from being who we ARE, and that leads to a miserable life.

Like millions of girls and women in America, I battled with "Barbie Bondage." Even after I became a Christian it affected my life, my marriage, my mothering and my mind. I developed an eating disorder and was in a mental battle on a daily basis. No matter how much I perfected my outer image, I never--not even for a moment--felt it was enough. Outer beauty without inner beauty and eternal beauty equals a life of loneliness, discontentment and despair. I guarantee you'll never hear anyone on their deathbed say, "I wish I had thinner thighs and bluer eyes!"

Through years of searching and study and countless prayers, the chains of "Barbie Bondage" have finally lost their grip on me. There is hope but it's not found on the pages of a magazine or within the sweet words of an adoring boy. It's found in the One who created you and has an awesome plan for your life.

If you want to learn more, visit the GirlTalk Conference Website.

Copyright Sherri Rose Sheperd