Who doesn’t like a good fairy tale? If it’s not a fairy tale, maybe it’s your favorite movie. I remember my dad and I always talking about movies after we saw them and how it touched our hearts, and what about the story moved us.
Fairy tales evoke longing in my heart. The following are 4 examples of stories that have touched my heart and why.
CINDERELLA – For me, what stands out and calls to my heart, is here we have a girl who is forced in slavery, she remains true and loyal and comes out victorious having all her dreams come true. She is singled out by the prince himself. What is so amazing and touches my heart as being noble and something to attain is even in her slavery she remained content. She had a peace and joy about her that no one could steal from her even her wicked step mom and step sisters. Wickedness can hardly bear that kind of peace and joy. They tried so hard to rob and steal her of it, but despite her circumstances she remained good-hearted Cinderella. I can draw so many theological and biblical principles from this. We are victorious through Christ. We can do all things through Him who gives us strength. Remember the apostle Paul talked about being content no matter the circumstance. He could find real joy even if he was in chains. What is the enemy trying to steal from us? Our joy! Remember the evil step mom, she couldn’t stand Cinderella’s joy. We could view Jesus as our prince in our grand design. He loves us with an everlasting love and has called us by name, rescuing us from slavery and bondage. We are set free!
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST – Belle(Beauty), she shows the human capacity to be able to see under the mask and see a person for who they are not what they look like by outward appearances. This is a noble quality–not to judge a book by its cover. The beast on the other hand has a different story to be told. The beast has to learn to get over himself, stop looking in the mirror with judgment and disgust, so that he can allow people to love him just as he is. He has to let go of his ego and pride. For me, I have a little of both beauty and beast complex. I relate with Belle in that I generally want to see the good in people. I want to be gracious, but the truth is I relate more with the beast. Sometimes I want to isolate and hide and this makes it very hard to open up to people and allow myself to be vulnerable. It’s not about me. The beast in me wants to make it about me. I catch myself feeling shame. Isn’t this the nature of the conflict as a Christian? We have been made new in Christ, but we still wrestle every day.
FRED AND GINGER – When I was a teenager something drew me to this fantastic silver screen couple. I was so captivated by the way they were so in sync. Every move they made dancing together was if they were one not two. I was hypnotized by it. It really was like perfection. The truth that comes out for me here is we long for total oneness, perfection, paradise. This in a way shadows that for me. When we are in Christ we desire to be more and more perfected to be fully in sync with him and one with him. As He moves we move in sync with him. No battle, no struggle. Just effortlessly following his lead! This is no fairy tale, we will one day be fully restored.
WIZARD OF OZ – Lastly is one of my all time favorites! I watched this so many times as a kid and as an adult that I can literally recite the movie line for line. Just ask my husband! He has heard it maybe not to his delight. LOL! Anyway this movie is about a girl seeking adventure, wanting more, her heart is bursting with desire, and she is going after it. You know the story. Once she gets out on her adventure, she soon realizes that her desire is for home. She longs for home. Her adventure and what she was looking for was not somewhere over the rainbow. As you know most of the movie is trying to get home. How many times are we trying to seek out adventure to fulfill our happiness and longing only to find out that it doesn’t suffice and we are left with a void, saying just get my home. We as Christians, this life is a little like wandering around in Oz, it’s not home, and we long for our real home. Jesus is our guide, our strength, our light, our all in all, as we journey through this alien land. He is helping us through it and soon and very soon we will be home.
What is speaking to you? Fairy tale? A movie? A song? I’d like to hear your thoughts.
Blessings to you all! Have a blessed weekend!
Johanna
stones from the quarry 
I love this!
Thoughts on Cinderella – What a fantastic retelling of our story in a different setting. You have the fair maiden who doesn’t know how beautiful she really is, but she knows she doesn’t belong where she is at in life. She knows in her heart there is more. And there is. The Prince is just taken by her and he will stop at nothing to keep her. The stepmother and stepsisters…that’s satan through and through! But, the Prince’s love wins out for her in the end and they live happily ever after in the Prince’s father’s house, the castle. Love it.
Haha! That’s funny about Wizard of Oz. Ask my wife, I have my movies that I can recite line by line too. Most of them are pretty nerdy movies!
So here’s a couple items for my that God has wooed my heart through:
Armageddon – Bruce Willis, Liv Tyler, Ben Affleck, Billy Bob Thornton. I watched this a lot in high school and college, especially after reading Eldredge, and it has all of the elements that our bigger story with Jesus has. It has redemption. It has salvation. It has sacrifice. It has a beautiful love story. Family and friendships devoted to the cause. It’s amazing. I cry every single time, most time balling my eyes out, when Harry Stamper says goodbye to his daughter and then presses the button on the asteroid to explode the nuke. And then the wedding video…it’s just riddled with deep undertones of the story, as John calls it, The Grand Affair, and the Sacred Romance.
The desert – I live in the plains, about a days drive from the southwest. And there is something about the desert that calls to my heart. Like God’s beauty is just waiting for me out there. We go out there once a year for a vacation. I think to unpack this one would take a full blog post, maybe I should do it, but there is just something out in the desert that I calls to me of Jesus’ beauty. It’s tough to put into words.
Sunsets in the eastern sky – Odd, I know right? And actually I could write one too for the western sky. But there’s something about the way the light reflects off some high whiffs of cirrus in the eastern sky, reflecting deep blues, purples and pinks from the setting sun that is just like Jesus wooing my heart. I know it’s him, it’s Ecclesiastes 3:11 and I can’t put it much more into words than that. (It’s tough to write out these things sometimes)
Music…I could write on this for a long time. Music can take us deep into our romance with God. I could write a lot here. Suffice to say, music has played an integral role with me and Jesus, in good ways and also as a stumbling block to me.
Books…goodness. Too many to count. Lord of the Rings at Christmastime, Wuthering Heights at Thanksgiving are two of my faves. Mostly because I read them at seasons of my life where it was just me and Jesus and I was just enshrouded in the romantic feelings with him all day long, most days – just living on the mountaintop. That’s not every day for me now. So reentering those times through literature is very joyful for me 🙂
Great stuff. We’re really just scratching the surface on this one. But great choices you wrote about! Great post!!!
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On Cinderella…..exactly exactly! Love that story for that reason!
You have painted so many awesome pictures through your words on how Jesus has spoken to you through creation, through music, through movies. I can fully relate and isn’t it amazing how the same love story of Jesus speaks through in different ways. The story is the same but whether it’s a snow filled scene or ocean view or a Beethoven sonata, Jesus can use all those things to whisper his love and grace to us.
Thank you for writing out your thoughts!
Have a great weekend!
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Very well done, Johanna. I can relate to all of these at various stages of my life. I am often surprised at the things God will use to speak to me. Nice post! 🙂
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Thank you dear Debbie! Isn’t that so cool how He can use those things to speak to us and awaken our hearts? It’s amazing!
Hope your staying warm up in cold Canada! 😃
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Yes, so far it has been a lovely crisp Fall, but I am not looking forward to when the snow comes. Sometimes I wish I lived in sunny California. 🙂 This winter, my husband will be home to shovel the snow. It will be a pleasure to watch him do it too. He is doing so well in his recovery. God is super awesome loving and gracious. 🙂 Hugs to you, Johanna.
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oooooooh! Yeah shoveling snow doesn’t sound fun! But I’m so glad your husband is well enough to be able to. 🙂
We don’t get much fall here. It’s just warm then the occasional cold days. No changing of leaves. 😦
Hugs to you too!
Happy Thanksgiving!
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