Tuesday, March 15, 2011

God-Tale Updated

I have been working on the message that God has given me.  I am hoping to get to share it with some single women at the Women's Retreat this year.  So if you would, please be in prayer with me about that.

Please keep in mind that this is copyrighted, so if you would like to share with someone, please contact me.

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Introduction


Most of us grow up hearing fairytales and we dream of the day when our prince will ride up and carry us off into the sunset to live happily ever after. Sadly, we buy into these stories and dream of things that are unrealistic. We set ourselves up for a lifetime of disappointment.

Rather than wishing for a fairytale, make it a God-tale. You will see that there are dramatic differences between fairytales and God-tales. The most remarkable difference is that our dreams won’t set us up with unrealistic ideals. So we won’t be disappointed, because we aren’t disillusioned. By no means am I suggesting that you should give up on your dreams. Quite the contrary! I am suggesting that you give your dreams to God and let Him give you the dreams He has for you.

Perhaps you were Sleeping Beauty and you paid dearly for someone else’s mistake. Or maybe you were Cinderella and you were mistreated and abused by those who should have taken care of you. Or you might have been Snow White and someone wanted you dead. Or perhaps you were the Little Mermaid and you traded something of great importance to get your prince to notice you. You could have even been the belle of the ball, but your prince turned out to not only be less than charming but a beast.

No matter where you have been or currently are in life, it is never too late to turn your shattered dreams into a God-tale filled with hope, love and a happily ever after, hand-crafted by an ever-loving God.


A God-Tale

Once upon a time, there was a great and kind King who had one Son. Every day the King and His son would walk down to the village to spend time among the people. The King loved all of His people, but He especially loved the little flower girl.

The little flower girl would go out into the fields every morning to pick flowers to sell in the market. As long as she stayed on the King’s land, she was safe. Every day the King would stop by her cart and buy all of her flowers and give her a generous tip. The flower girl only had one thin dress and her cheeks usually had smudges of dirt on them, but the King always treated her like she was royalty. After buying the flowers, He would bow with a great flourish, kiss her hand and say, “Thank you My lady.”

The King’s people all loved Him, but the magician who lived in the forest hated the King and all who were loved by Him. The magician knew that the King especially loved the little flower girl and so he plotted to trick her into slavery. Next to the field where she picked her flowers, one morning the magician made what looked like a beautiful rose bush.

When the little flower girl was picking flowers the next day, she saw the rose bush and climbed over the fence that divided the forest from the King’s land so she could reach them. The moment she touched one of the roses, the bush turned into a thorn bush and ensnared her sleeve. The magician strolled out and put her in chains, claiming she would now be his slave.

Later that day when the King went to the village that day, the flower girl and her cart were nowhere to be seen. The King and His Son ran to the field, They saw the thorn bush and knew that the magician must be behind it. They travelled quickly to the magicians shack. He stood in the doorway behind the flower girl. The King commanded, “Let her go!”

The magician replied, “She is my slave now King and there is nothing You can do about it.”

The King’s Son said, “I will trade my life for the flower girl’s.”

The magician cackled and said, “It’s a deal!” He released the little girl and the King’s Son stepped into her place. The chains that had once bound the girl immediately

wound around Him. As they turned to leave, the flower girl looked back at the King’s Son. He smiled and winked at her. On the trip back, to His land, the King explained that the magician was soon in for a surprise.

The King didn’t stop in the village, but instead took the flower girl to His castle. He turned to her and said, “My Son has paid your ransom. I would like to adopt you and you will live in the palace with Me. You are now the daughter of the King and that makes you a Princess. The King gave the flower girl a royal robe and a crown.

After three days, the King’s Son arrived at the palace. The little girl was overjoyed to see Him. The King sent couriers to the village to invite everyone to a great feast to be held that very night to celebrate the return of His Son and the adoption of the flower girl.

The King’s Son told about how on the third day of His captivity the chains disappeared. When the magician saw this he shrieked because he apparently was unaware that a selfless act of sacrifice reduced a lifetime of slavery down to a mere three days. Everyone howled with laugher as the Prince re-enacted the magician’s reaction.

As time passed, the magician continued to plot how he could capture the Princess. He sent a frog to her, which said it was a prince and if she just kissed it, it would break the enchantment. But the King had promised the Princess that when the time was right, He would find the perfect Prince for her, so she didn’t fall for the trap. The magician tried to send a dragon to the Princess to scare her. But she remembered that the King was more powerful than any dragon and He had promised to protect her. The magician continued to try to cause trouble, but the more time the flower girl spent with the King and His Son, the easier it was for her to spot his traps.

And so, the flower girl lived happily ever after as the Daughter of the King.

The End

Chapter 1

In a God-tale, you don’t need a fairy godmother because you have a Heavenly God Father.

He was not assigned to watch over you. He chose you! You were adopted, which means you were hand selected.

Ephesians 1:5

God decided in advance to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to Himself through Jesus Christ. This is what He wanted to do and it gave Him great pleasure.

Romans 8:15-17a

So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s spirit when He adopted you as His own children. Now we call Him “Abba Father.” For His Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children. And since we are His children, we are His heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory.

The word Abba is Hebrew and is a term of endearment for one’s father. Abba is a more intimate expression than the normal Hebrew word for Father. It is more correctly translated as “Daddy”, “dear Father” or “Papa”. Our Heavenly Daddy is neither cold nor distant. He is not disinterested in you. In fact, you are always in His thoughts.

Psalm 139:17-18a

How precious are your thoughts about me, O God.

They cannot be numbered!

I cannot even count them;

They outnumber the grains of sand.

I tried to find out how many grains of sand there are on the Earth. It is estimated that just in the beaches of the world there are 1024. That is ten with twenty-four zeros behind it. But that is just beaches, it does not count deserts. I want to put this into perspective for you. So just using 1024 if you lived to be 100 years old that is still 317,097,919,837,646 thoughts that God has for you EVERY SECOND! I don’t know about you, but that realization, gives me goose bumps!

Even if you were not always in His thoughts, He promises that He is not ignoring you and He has not forgotten you.

Isaiah 49:15-16a

Can a mother forget her nursing child? Can she feel no love for the child she has borne? But even if that were possible, I would not forget you! See I have written your name on the palms of My hands.

He has written your name on the palms of His hands. You don’t have to worry about the ink fading out or washing off. It is permanent. That word “forget” means “forget, ignore, or cease to care.” God Himself is telling you that He will neither forget you, nor will He ignore you or cease to care about you.

Are you getting the idea that you are special to God? He not only doesn’t forget you or constantly think about you, but He also considers you His greatest treasure.

Exodus 19:5

Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples on earth; for all the earth belongs to me.

James 1:17-18

Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. He chose to give birth to us by giving us His true word. And we out of all Creation became His prized possessions.

Chapter 2

In a God-tale you don’t need a fairy makeover, because you have a Heavenly do-over.

You don’t have to start out as perfect. It doesn’t matter if you are not “washboard, athletic, slender or average.” It doesn’t matter if your skin tone is uneven, if one leg is longer than the other, or if your hair doesn’t curl the right way. Some of the greatest makeovers have been given to formerly ugly stepsisters. With this makeover, you are changed from the inside out.

Colossians 3:9b-14 (The Message)

You’re done with that old life. It’s like a filthy set of ill-fitting clothes you stripped off and put in the fire. Now you’re dressed in a new wardrobe. Every item of your new way of life is custom-made by the Creator, with His label on it. All the old fashions are now obsolete. Words like Jewish and non-Jewish, religious and irreligious, insider and outsider, uncivilized and uncouth, slave and free, mean nothing. From now on everyone is defined by Christ, everyone is included in Christ. So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It’s your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.

Your new wardrobe will never go out of style, it will always be in season, and it will always fit you perfectly. I am not saying that you may not be tempted at times to try to put on those old rags. But that will always be your choice, not the Father’s. You don’t have to rush home before the makeover goes back to what it was before. A God-tale makeover doesn’t have an expiration date.

 Chapter 3 

In a God-tale, there isn’t an evil step-mother, but there is a very real enemy.

This enemy wants you to buy into fairytale dreams. He likes it when you are disillusioned and disappointed. He loves to keep you distracted from the God-tale that the Father has for you. In fact, you could even say that it is his favorite hobby. He wants to keep you locked up in a tower of doubt and regret. He also wants to keep you convinced that he has more power than he really does.

1 Peter 5:8-9

Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are.

Often times, in nature a lion roars to indicate to whom the territory belongs. It is also used to frighten and confuse its prey. A lion’s roar can also be heard over a long distance and sounds much closer than it is. The enemy prowls around roaring. But the Lion of Judah has already marked His territory. The enemy roars to try to confuse and frighten us, but you belong to a pride who’s King is much stronger.

The enemy will attack you on every side and every front. He is always trying to steal your joy and peace. He is trying to drown you in despair, disappointment and distress. He is trying to make you take your eyes off of the Father and put them on the waves of life that are threatening to overtake you. Have you ever noticed that when you are having a bad day, it seems like everything that can possibly go wrong does?

Habakkuk 3:17-18

Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines;

Even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren;

Even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty,

YET will I rejoice in the Lord! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!

 Revelation 5:4-5

In one of my favorite books Anticipatience: A New Word of Hope for Single Women by Sharon Virkler puts it this way:

You may be facing a barren period in your own life, similar to what Habakkuk described. You may sense no answers to your questions. Despair may be looming on the horizon like a huge wave, ready to swallow you up if you give in to it, but remember that you can go ahead and tell God everything in your heart – your dreams, desires, and disappointments. He knows all about them anyway, and after you have emptied your heart, stand up right next to your Heavenly Father and say with courage, determination and tenacity, “Yet will I trust You.”

Chapter 3

In a God-tale, you don’t need a prince to rescue you, because you have already been rescued by the Prince of Peace.

You already have a Knight in Shining armor. He rescued you before you were even born. He fights for you. He died for you! He has literally gone through Hell and back to rescue you. He loves you with a passion that surpasses that of Romeo for Juliet. His love for you invades every part of His being.

Galatians 1:4

Jesus gave His life for our sins just as God our Father had planned, in order to rescue us from this evil world in which we live.

Once you have been rescued, you aren’t to sit idly by as the defenseless fair maidens. You are to be a warrior princess, put on your armor and fight beside your Prince.

Ephesians 6:10b-14. 18 (The Message)

God is strong, and He wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his Angels. Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your won. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting, you’ll still be on your feet. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.

You also don’t have to worry about losing the battle, because this battle has already been won!

Chapter 4
In a God-tale, you don’t need to be brought to life by your true love’s first kiss because you have already been brought to life by your True Love’s shed blood.

The death we have been saved from is a spiritual death. Life on earth is terminal, but life with our True Love is eternal. There is no “til death do us part.”

Hebrews 2:14

Because God’s children are human beings – made of flesh and blood – the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could He die, and only by dying could He break the power of the devil, who had the power of death.

Romans 6:23

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.

Chapter 5

In a God-tale, you don’t need to wish upon a star because you have the promises of the Star Breather.

Did you know that there are over 3,000 promises in the Bible? Over and over, time after time, the Bible tells us that the promises that God makes are unbreakable. He keeps all of the promises that He makes.

Hebrews 6:16-20 (The Message)

When people make promises, they guarantee them by appeal to some authority above them so that if there is any question that they’ll make good on the promise, the authority will back them up. When God wanted to guarantee His promises, He gave His word, a rock-solid guarantee – God can’t break His word. And because His word cannot change, the promise is likewise unchangeable. We who have run for our very lives to God have every reason to grab the promised hope with both hands and never let go. It’s an unbreakable spiritual lifeline, reaching past all appearances right to the very presence of God.

Titus 1:2 (The Message)

My aim is to raise hopes by pointing the way to life without end. This is the life God promised long ago – and He doesn’t break promises.

Chapter 6

In a God-tale, you don’t have to kiss frogs because the Father has a Prince for you.

In this day and age, abstinence is considered to be an old-fashioned, antiquated tradition that is unrealistic, impossible and unnecessary. Sadly, many Christians have bought into this lie. They have given themselves over to the idea that in order to know if someone is “the one,” you have to experience physical intimacy with them. This is a lie, developed by the master schemer and it is meant to demoralize, demean and devastate.

Galatians 5:13

You, my brothers, were called to be free, but do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature.

Romans 6:15-23

What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means! Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey – whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness. I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness. When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

If you have been kissing frogs, don’t give up. It is never too late to turn back to the Father and make a new beginning. He is not trying to ruin your fun. Rather, He is trying to save you from unnecessary heartache. He wants you to experience the amazing blessing that can only be found in obedience.

Is it possible in our sin-crazed society? Yes, with God’s help and self-control.

Is it easy? Not at all!

Is it worth it? Incredibly so!

There was a time in my life that I would have tuned out anyone preaching abstinence. I would have made the excuse that they don’t know how impossible it is to maintain purity in relationships. But after yet another heartbreak caused by giving into my sinful nature, God finally got a hold of my heart. He showed me who I am in Him and how he sees me (and all of His daughters). In fact, this whole message is a direct result of the things that God showed me.

Conclusion

These words are directly from your Father’s heart, I am merely His pen.

You are my precious jewel, My dearest treasure. You are the apple of My eye. You are My highly esteemed, beloved, darling daughter. I am the King of the Universe Who’s throne is in Heaven and the earth is My footstool, the Star Breather, the Master Designer, the Mountain Mover, the Promise Keeper and the Mender of Broken Hearts. I am your Champion, your Deliverer and the Lover of your soul. I am your Daddy! I am not the kind of dad who is absent or distant from his children’s lives, rather I am very involved and I am concerned with every aspect of your life.

If you need a shoulder to cry on, My arms are always open. If you need someone to carry you when you can’t go any farther, I am always strong enough. If you need someone to cheer you on, I will run beside you to the finish line encouraging you with every step. If you need someone to love you, I always have and I will never stop.

You do not need to desire a fairytale romance because I am the Author or Romance and I have written for you a God-tale. Do not despair. I have not forgotten you. I am waiting for the perfect time when the blessing will be the greatest. My plans and My times are always perfect!

A royal arranged marriage that has been planned for you from the beginning, by Me, your most loving Father. I want you to be happy and blessed. You do not need to fear that you will not like the groom I have chosen for you. I know you well enough to hand pick a prince among men just for you. I have taken great delight in doing this and you will be blessed by My choice, if you will just be patient.

Your happy ending will not be without adversity or troubles. But the point My daughter, is not to live happily ever after, but to truly LIVE as the dearly beloved daughter of the King! Because that is what you are.