It was a lazy Sunday afternoon. The sun was bright and the sky was clear. Birds chirped back and forth as if they were sharing the happenings of the last week with one another. Out of the kitchen window, one could see a mother washing the family car as two neighbourhood boys sat nearby on the curb and lazily tossed small chips of gravel back and forth. In the air was a faint warm breeze that teasingly suggested that spring had finally arrived. I settled back with my book, a childhood favorite, Grimm’s Fairy Tales.

Carried off to a world far, far away

Just like many other people, fairy tales had always captured my attention. No sooner would I open the book and I would be carried off to a world far, far away. This world was always predictable, idyllic and carefree.

The fairy tales would all begin the same way with “Once upon a time…” and conclude with the ever famous “…and they lived happily ever after…” The theme never varied much. There were those people who were poor, by no doing of their own, who magically were granted immense wealth, again by no doing of their own. There were those who were born physically less attractive than any model king or queen, who, magically were transformed into beauty that all eyes sought to behold.

Fairy-tale romances

My favorites, and perhaps yours, were those fairy tales that told of the meeting of the handsome, young Prince and the beautiful, young Princess. The Prince, of course, always sought out the Princess at any cost. No river was ever too deep to cross. No mountain ever too high to climb. No villain ever too evil to be vanquished. Destiny always prevailed, good always triumphed, and the Prince always reached down his hand and strongly set his Princess onto the back of his tamed stallion and carried her off to his castle.

Do Cinderella stories really happen?

My heart was warmed as I read, once again, the story of Cinderella. The last few lines always made me smile:

He [the Prince] was absolutely determined, however, to have his way, and they were obliged to summon Cinderella.

When she had washed her hands and face, she went up and curtsied to the Prince, who handed her the golden slipper. Then she sat down on a bench, pulled off her wooden clog, and put on the slipper, which fitted to a nicety.

And when she stood up and the Prince looked into her face, he recognized the beautiful maiden that he had danced with and cried, “This is the true bride!”.

The stepmother and the two sisters were dismayed and turned white with rage. But he took Cinderella on his horse and rode off with her. (pp. 155-156)

I sighed. Do Cinderella stories ever really happen? I continue on. This time to read of Snow White.

A wedding like Snow White’s

“Oh dear, where am I?” cried she [Snow White].

The King’s son answered, full of joy, “You are near me.” And relating all that had happened, he said, “I would rather have you than anything in the world. Come with me to my father’s castle and you shall be my bride.”

And Snow White was kind and went with him, and their wedding was held with pomp and great splendor. (pp. 167)

Another sigh. I tried to think of any “Snow White” that I might possibly know. I turned the page. Aah, this was truly one of my all-time favorites, Briar Rose, better known as Sleeping Beauty.

To be kissed like Sleeping Beauty!

After many, many years a prince came again to the country and heard an old man tell of the castle which stood behind the briar hedge, in which a most beautiful maiden called Briar Rose had been asleep for the last hundred years, and with her the King, the Queen, and all their courtiers. He knew also from his grandfather that many princes had already come and sought to pierce through the briar hedge, and had remained caught in it and died a sad death.

Then the young Prince said, “I am not afraid. I am determined to go and look upon the lovely Briar Rose.

He went farther, and all was so still that he could hear his own breathing. At last he reached the tower and opened the door into the little room where Briar Rose was asleep. There she lay, looking so beautiful that he could not take his eyes off her. He bent down and gave her a kiss.

As he touched her, Briar Rose opened her eyes and looked lovingly at him.

Then the wedding of the Prince and Briar Rose was celebrated with all splendor, and they lived happily till they died . (pp. 98-100)

Who could be better than a fairy godmother?

Cinderella, Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty were all recipients of a fairy tale life. I sat back to ponder their good fortune. Is it possible to live such a life?

I shook my head and tried to clear my thoughts. Yet, I continued to ponder these fairy tale ideals.

No, I thought, there really are no such people as fairy godmothers waiting to grant me my every wish. The truth is, though, that I trust in the one and only Sovereign God who intricately knows all the situations and circumstances that surround and invade my life. There is no detail of my heart, too great or too small, that escapes His attention.

I was reminded of Psalm 20, verse 7 where it states, “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.” Yes, I can bring my wishes to someone far greater than any fairy godmother and can trust in the name of the Lord my God to answer “my wishes” in the proper priority and in the appropriate manner and in the perfect time.

My pot of gold

I leaned back in my chair and thought about my life and what it would be like if I never ever had another financial worry. Would that not be bliss? My reason once again assured me that I should not expect to find an envelope filled with an endless supply of cash, that would put an end to all my financial woes, mysteriously slipped underneath my door. Nor would it be right to spend my time chasing some magical pot of gold that may or may not be found at the end of some rainbow.

The Bible confirms that God is the Great Supplier of all the riches I will ever need and most likely His determined amount and my desired amount would most always differ. Certainly the God, who, as the Bible says, “owns the cattle on a thousand hills” (Psalm 50:10) can certainly supply me a cow, or the money from the sale of a cow, if He sees fit. I really need not worry.

Now about that Prince…

Now, how about this “perfect Prince” thing, I thought. Can a lady really expect that some handsome Prince will carry her away to his royal palace? Perhaps, the better questions is, are there any Princes out there actually looking for a Princess? Once again, I was reminded of the Sovereignty of the Lord.

Our best interests are of utmost concern to Him, and He, the author of love and marriage, delights in introducing Princes and Princesses. Did God not supply Eve for Adam, Ruth for Boaz, and Rebecca for Isaac? Certainly when the Lord sees fit to join a man and woman in marriage, we can be assured that He has introduced the perfect Prince to the perfect Princess in His perfect way in accordance with His perfect will.

As the lazy Sunday afternoon was drawing to a close, I set aside my copy of Grimms’ Fairy Tales, and smiled to myself. Walking in the ways of the Lord, experiencing His presence daily in our lives, and living out the very purpose for which He created us is actually far more exciting than ever living in a fairy tale world. Most of all, in light of eternity, we truly will live happily ever after.

God wants to be our leverage in living, empowering us to feel better about ourselves, more excited about our future, more grateful for those we love and more enthusiastic about our faith.

If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, God has given you His Holy Spirit to help you live life according to His perfect plan. Why not pray this simple prayer and by faith invite Him to fill you with His Spirit:

Dear Father, I need you. I acknowledge that I have sinned against you by directing my own life. I thank You that You have forgiven my sins through Christ’s death on the cross for me. I now invite Christ to again take His place on the throne of my life. Fill me with the Holy Spirit as You commanded me to be filled, and as You promised in Your Word that You would do if I asked in faith. I pray this in the name of Jesus. As an expression of my faith, I thank You for directing my life and for filling me with the Holy Spirit. Amen.

If you prayed this prayer, we would love to hear about it!