Becoming Cinderella

Once upon a time there was a beautiful, kind young girl who lived in a faraway land.  She lost her mother at a young age and was raised and adored by her father.  She led a happy life… until …the wicked step mother and step sisters entered the picture. The poor girl was then suddenly dealt a hard blow when her father died and she was left living as a servant to three horrid women. 

Of course, most of us know I’m speaking of the timeless tale of Cinderella.  After taking my children to see the newest version of the Disney classic, I couldn’t help but let my mind wander a bit.

Cindy had a hard life.  Both of her parents died while she was still young. She became a slave.  And, her best friends were rodents. The story took a twist when the prince, whom she didn’t know, caught up with her after he saw her swiftly riding a horse through the forest.

Let’s stop there and read that last sentence again.  The prince caught up with her.

She wasn’t taking a leisurely ride to scope for a rich single man to marry so she could live happily ever after.  From the scene in the movie, it appeared she was frustrated, angry and hurt.  She jumped on the horse to escape the harsh realities of her life.  She had no idea, when she woke that morning, she would meet the man of her dreams.  The man she would later marry.  She was busy living her own life. 

There are many lessons to be learned from this fable, but, there are two that stand out.

·         Single women…stop looking for Mr. Right and let him find you. Some of us ladies have been bitten by the same bug and are carrying around a disease I like to call single-itis. We equate happiness to marrying our prince, having children and riding off into the sunset.  Until then, we hold our breath, waiting for him to show up and think once he does everything will be right in our little world and life will begin.  As singles age, hope diminishes and we wonder if he’s fallen off his horse, we’ll take matters into our own hands. We will chase the guy we just “know” we are destined to be with.  While there is nothing wrong with letting a guy know we’re interested, we should not switch roles.  Allow a man to be a man.  Let him pursue.  Proverbs 18:22 says He who finds a wife finds what is good.  It does not read she who finds a husband finds what is good. 

·         Even if your situation looks bleak, EVERYTHING can change in one moment on any ordinary day. Cinderella was going about her normal daily routine.  I’m sure her outlook on the future was dim.  It’s probably safe to say she felt deserted and forgotten.  But, one day brought one special encounter that would change the course of her life. We may think this is just fairytale gibberish but I would argue and say it happens in real life all the time.  Look at the story of Ruth in the Bible.  Ruth was a widow who made a hard choice to follow her mother-in-law to a foreign land where she committed to care for her.  Little did Ruth know that while working (gleaning the fields), her future husband, Boaz, would notice her. That divine encounter would later lead them to marriage and a child that would be a part of the lineage of Jesus Christ!  Here we see a story that is thousands of years old with the same concept.  The man pursued the woman and it happened on a regular day to a woman who probably thought she would be single the rest of her days.

From an early age, many girls fantasize about being a princess.  Becoming Cinderella is not too far-fetched.  In fact, many of us are half way there, having gone through similar emotions she did. Feelings of abandonment, insecurity and loss just to name a few.   Instead of wishing our lives were like a make-believe fairytale, let’s take the lessons we learn from these magical stories and apply them to our own real lives.  

Our majestic Father in heaven who created each of us placed desires in our hearts. He knows our deepest yearning.  He has not lost our address and is more than capable of sending the complete package if He chooses. However, we must not fool ourselves.  There is no one on this earth that will ever be able to bring us the happiness we think they will. The only One who can is a man whose kingdom is not of this world. So, let’s get busy doing our work for the King and just maybe, when the time is right, that special someone will notice us…the princesses we already are.