The Ministry of the Blue Fairy

You want to be taller.
You want to lose some weight.
You want a million dollars.
You want the girl of your dreams to start looking your way.

Are these the normal prayer requests you hear in a Pentecostal church? No, but they are the common desires of almost every fairy tale protagonist I've ever read.


A child's wildest dream coming true with the wave of a magic wand. ... A man's entire life course being transformed via mystical means. ... A young woman's desire to marry the prince made possible through supernatural intervention.


They are not the types of miracles contained in scripture, but they are the subject of this blog post today.





Acceptable prayer requests


The LORD answers individual prayers. Yet it is possible to believe that God answers prayers, while all the time calling on Him in a manner that limits His ability to fulfill them.


"Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts."


This is sensitive territory. I don't ever wish to discourage you from sharing your innermost needs and deepest feelings with your Creator. Who am I to judge your conversations with The LORD? I want you to give God EVERYTHING, including those secret questions and prayers we make when we're away from the listening ears of everyone else.

However, let me describe the difference between Heavenly miracles and the "fairy-tale miracles".


(1a) In Genesis 24, Abraham sends out his servant to find the woman ordained by God to be Isaac's bride (her name would be Rebekah).

(1b) In the fairy tale of Cinderella, a magical individual grants Cinderella her "wish" to be transformed in a manner that attracts a wealthy and handsome prince.

(2a) In Daniel 4, King Nebuchadnezzar is changed into a beastly form for "seven times" (as long as 7 years, depending on the exact meaning of the text in vs. 16), until he knew "the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men" (vs. 32). Then he became a worshipper of Jehovah God.

(2b) In the legend of Beauty & the Beast, a magical creature transmogrifies a selfish young prince into a hideous beast "until he found true love".

Do you begin to see a certain pattern already? The scriptural stories center on GOD, and the fairy tales center on PEOPLE!


Fairy tales center on HUMAN desires, while the Scriptures focus on GOD's WILL!


The "me-me-me" requests must transform into God-centered prayers. We are told that all of our life-statements must begin with, "if The Lord will" (James 4:15).

The Ministry of Magic

Christianity is not Magic, and Magic is not Christian.

There are reasons for the way in which we call on God and make requests of Him. The main difference between MAGIC and Christianity is as follows:

In Magic, you learn to bend the spiritual to serve the human being.
In Christianity, you bend the human being in order to serve The Spirit (that is, The Holy Ghost)!

This central Truth is part of what divides Christians from the alternative religions of the modern era.

At the precise time when Atheism is the fastest growing religion in America, magic- and mystical-fiction stories dominate our popular culture. Why? Because the modernistic drumbeat of unbelief can never quash our instinctive longing for the world beyond this one.

I believe the desire to comprehend the beyond and the supernatural is a Creative order instilled in us by God Himself. Here's the scriptural proof:


"For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body."

This is a deep passage. Verse 23 above tells you that we (the children of God) "groan within ourselves, waiting for ... the redemption of our body". We FEEL the yearning to be made new in God in eternity. However, there is a curious statement before that in verse 22 about how "the whole creation groaneth ..." - so it's not just the saved or The Christians who feel the eternal longing of God, but even SINNERS and non-Christians feel the innate sensation that THERE IS MORE to the world than what they see!

The idolatry of your Heart

Innumerable love stories and children's fantasies have one common theme: "Follow your heart"! Romantic tales and star-crossed fantasies all proclaim to teens and adults alike: your heart is never wrong.

There's only one problem - The Bible says the opposite!

"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?"

Well, what do we do with that one? I have already penned a full blog post on how Scriptures cannot be ignored, massaged, or falsely interpreted. Our hearts can be wrong! This isn't the only verse that says that either.

"For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things."

There we have it. "God is GREATER than our heart"! Our hearts are fallible. They can miss it, but God's Spirit is never wrong. He always desires good for you (Jeremiah 29:11).

What this means

I fear that many of you will read this thinking that God won't answer your personal needs. This is simply not true.

"But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus."

But it doesn't even stop with your needs. God can also give you your WANTS:

"Delight thyself also in the LORD: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart."

The desires of your heart can come to pass! God can make them all happen. I accept that. But that acceptance means that I also accept God's way of MAKING them happen. I must believe that His route to my destiny and dreams is the best.

The lesson of fairy tales is that worldly shortcuts to my desires never turn out right.

I'm not looking for a blue fairy to wave a wand and make me who I want to be - I'm asking for the LORD to guide me into a new life.

I'm not looking for a tiny magical creature to whisk me away from my problems into "Neverland" - I'm looking for The Pillar of Cloud to lead me through my wilderness into My Promised Land.

Lastly, I look not for a fairy godmother to give me my heart's desire. Only ONE person can do that: Jesus. He can make the impossible possible, and make dreams come true!

Comments

  1. Amen! I think when people get married and they have been living in this type of fairy tale world, they too can have unrealistic expectations. When I first got in church I was only 19 and in the Navy. I didn't quite know what to expect once I got in church. I had one of my patients invite me & I was so hungry for God that I'd do anything for Jesus! Well, being brought up "Catholic", I didn't know all of the church lingo. But I did grow up with "Disney".....I had a great imagination. Ha! I, for many years, was looking for the fairy tale to begin, yet all I found was struggle, heartache & suffering. I can see how folks can get disillusioned if they don't pray, fast & keep their eyes on Jesus. I know one day when Jesus returns, my struggles will be over. Great blog! Thanks for posting!

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