Why did Cinderella have to ask permission from her step mother before going to the ball? Why did Rapunzel never leave the tower when she could have at any moment? Why didn’t Elsa take a leap of faith, and tell her sister about her powers? Each and every one of us has moments in our lives where we just can’t get over this feeling of rejection, fear, embarrassment, and failure.
Life can hold you down with fear. It can hold you down by going to slow, and it can hold you down by going….way to fast.
One of the most fast paced days I’ve ever lived, where it just felt like I grew two years in one day, was a day that I had a College Algebra test on. My teacher was awesome by the way. Mr. Beisel. Great teacher. Anyway, I was driving home from class and my phone rings. I’m like, “Okay, it’s probably my mom wondering when I’ll be home.”
But then I look at the number and it’s not her. So I answer, and the person on the other end says, “Is this Anna?….Do you still want the job?” Now it may not seem like a big deal, but at the time it was pretty incredible. My first job…I was very ecstatic to receive that call.
I tell you this because we all have those days that seem to explode upon us with change. Where we have had to make a choice that will mold a large portion of our lives.
For Cinderella it was getting dressed up and going to a ball where she would find her prince, and have the courage to stand up to her step mother and sisters. For Rapunzel it was the day a stranger stumbled upon her tower, and showed her the wonders of the world that was just outside her window. For Elsa it was the moment she couldn’t hide her power any more, and despite everything and everyone, her sister Ana never gave up on her.
I know these are just stories. Even fairy tales. Their fairy tales because they start with Once Upon A Time…..someone made a difference, someone changes peoples minds, someone against all odds….survived. You see, in every single one of these stories, it got worse before it got better. Their lives and their dreams crumbled before them, and that was when they made the choice to not live in their fear, their failures, or their pain.
Don’t let your fear of failure and disappointment hold you back. Go after the impossible! Christ came and made the impossible, possible through him. And his story didn’t start with Once Upon A Time. It started with, “In the Beginning.”
In the beginning, God loved us so much. In the beginning, God gave us grace. In the beginning, no matter how many times we turned our back on God because of fear, embarrassment, or anger, He still sought after us. In Hosea chapters 1-3 we hear about a man and his incredible faith in God, and his incredible LOVE for his wife. Despite the fear, doubt, and pain that was coursing through his body, he had faith in God and did the impossible. He forgave…
Hosea Chapters 1 & 3
God wanted Hosea to feel his pain…so he would understand. After Gomor has left Hosea again & again, God is still saying in, Chapter 3:1 And the LORD said to me, “Go again, love a woman who is loved by another man and is an adulteress, even as the LORD loves the children of Israel, though they turn to other gods and love cakes of raisins.”
Even though she has made a fool of herself because she wanted “nice” things…even though she has broken your heart and is now a slave to be bought…I want you to lover her, as I love the Church. Hosea understood as he walked through his village to find his wife.
Hosea 3:2-3 So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and a homer and a lethech of barley.
And I said to her, “You must dwell as mine for many days. You shall not play the whore, or belong to another man; so will I also be to you.”
Judah Smith said it perfectly,
“I don’t think you understand! Hosea just bought something that was already his. He walked street after street looking for his wife. Where do you look for prostitute? Where? What are the chances that Hosea finds his wife on some pedestal, CHAINED, NAKED, and being sold to the highest bidder for sex. Hosea looks at her and says, “Excuse me Sir, that’s my wife.” The man replies, “Sir, I don’t care who you are, there is a price that has to be paid for this woman.” I can just imagine Hosea saying, “How much?” He gets the money, hands it to the man, and looks into the eyes of his wife. This prostitute. The other men wanted to buy her to use her. But Hosea wanted to buy her to heal her.”
This story is not a “Once upon a time, and happily ever after” kind of story. This story has pain, gut wrenching sorrow in it. Hosea didn’t turn his back on his wife. He may of wanted to, but he didn’t. He held on to faith, and believed that God was revealing something amazing to him. That day in Hosea’s life must of been an explosion for him, he had to walk the streets for his wife, the prostitute. He probably had fear, pain, and even anger swirling in his heart and mind. But he walked those streets anyway…and found his bride.
Christ looked down on earth and saw sin, darkness, he saw HIS creation falling… And he said, “How much?”
The price of your own son is the only thing that can save them from their own sin. Christ sent his son to die for us. Jesus was the price for our freedom from sin. And he paid it.
Anna Beth: Under The Surface
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