Lessons of True and False From Fairy Tales

I love fairy tales-both in book form and in movies. They bring out such a girly side of me, and they just make me feel good. Last spring, I wrote a paper about how modern love stories and fairy tales tend to have a similar format, and I blogged a little about it.

Going beyond that, though, I have been thinking about what fairy tales actually do have in common with real life. I thought about a lot of this as I was watching Sleeping Beauty last week, and since then I went to see The Princess and the Frog (so great! I definitely recommend it) and then watched Beauty and the Beast, which is my favorite, after a particularly bad final; therefore, my mind has definitely been in a world of Disney songs lately.

Anyway, here are the "lessons of true and false from fairy tales."

TRUE: There is an enemy fighting against us.

In every fairy tale, there is a bad guy who wants to destroy or harm what is good in someone's life. In Sleeping Beauty, Maleficent wants to essentially kill Aurora; due to Prince Phillip's ability to bring her back by kissing her, she wants to destroy him as well. In our lives, Satan doesn't want us serving God. 1 Peter 5:8 tells us, "Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour." I believe that spiritual warfare is very real, and I believe that Satan would love nothing better than if we lost our faith or even became complacent in our faith so that we are doing nothing

for the kingdom of God. I have a feeling that Satan just loves hypocritical Christians. In The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis, Screwtape (a demon) tells his nephew Wormwood concerning a Christian (his "patient"):

For this reason I am almost glad to hear that he is still a churchgoer and a communicant... As long as he retains externally the habits of a Christian he can still be made to think of himself as one who has adopted a few new friends and amusements but whose spiritual state is much the same as it was six weeks ago. And while he thinks that, we do not have to contend with the explicit repentance of a definite, fully recognized, sin, but only with his vague, though uneasy, feeling that he hasn't been doing very well lately.

Our enemy is very real, and he wants to destroy us in whatever way he can.

FALSE: The enemy is always ugly and associates with the lowest of the low.

In The Princess and the Frog, the bad guy was a voodoo man that most people didn't pay attention to. In Sleeping Beauty, Maleficent was not only scary looking but all of her subjects were goblins and other creatures that society would have rejected. In real life, though, Satan often chooses to masquerade as something good, something beautiful.

In Isaiah 14:12, he is referred to as "morning star" and "son of the dawn." Honestly, listening to the enemy sounds like a good plan most of the time. His arguments normally involve promoting yourself, and he can use rationalism to make almost anything sound good. We don't always have the easy tip-off of Gaston being a complete superficial jerk (in Beauty and the Beast) or Ursula from The Little Mermaid being rejected by society due to her witchcraft.

FALSE: The fight is one specific battle.

In the end, there will be one major battle between God and Satan, but we fight battles daily. A lot of times, I think we assume that, once we overcome something, we are done with it. As many times as I have been able to let go of fear of my future or pride in myself, they always come back, and I have to reconquer them. Each time, though, I get stronger in defending myself against them, and I can see how God can grow me through those trials. In Sleeping Beauty, when Phillip is fighting the dragon form of Maleficent, she unhorses him, but he gets right back up. We have to do that. We can't let one little failure bring us defeat.

TRUE: We can't fight the battle on our own.

Cinderella has the help of her mice. Sebastian and Flounder help Ariel reveal Ursula's deception. Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather assist Prince Phillip. We are not to do this on our own. 2 Corinthians 12 tells us that God's power is made perfect in our weaknesses (v. 9). We have to be enabled by the power of the Spirit; our flesh is nothing on its own (Galatians 3:3). This is one of the hardest for me to constantly remember. I am so independent and want to do everything on my own, but that just makes me a complete wreck inside. God wants to take the burden, though, and remind us that it is through His power so it is not up to us to go it alone.

TRUE: "So arm yourself with this enchanted Shield of Virtue, and this mighty Sword of Truth, for these weapons of righteousness will triumph over evil." -Sleeping Beauty

Love love love how this is incorporated into this movie! Cue Ephesians 6, please! Then, later in the movie, when Phillip is fighting the dragon, Flora takes his sword and says, "Thou sword of truth, fly swift and sure, that evil die and good endure!" She then throws the sword at Maleficent and she melts into and inky pool and meets her end. Satan can do nothing against the Word of God! Scripture is one of the most valuable weapons we have to defeat Satan! When Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, to each of Satan's statements He responded with Scripture, and Satan could do nothing about it! John 16:33 says, "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." Amen!

TRUE and FALSE: "... and they all lived happily ever after."

I know it violates rules of reason to have a statement that is both true and false. Yes, I do believe we will all live happily ever after, but not till we get to heaven. There are some awesome moments of life, and I am very happy with what God has provided for me, but it's not the end. The end of the story does not come until Christ is reigning over all and every knee is bowing at His feet. Life will not be perfect until then. While I want to enjoy my time here, I don't want it to be the focus of my thoughts. I want to be able to have a focus on heaven, rather than the world, although it's not always my initial instinct.

But one day, Jesus will come, and He will redeem the world and make everything right:

Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords. (Revelation 19:11-16)

G.K. Chesterton wrote, "Fairytales are more than true. Not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten."* I fully believe that and live in faith that life is a fairy tale of sorts, and I am looking forward to the day when the Dragon is fully conquered and the King of Kings rules over all.

P.S. In a post about fairy tales, I couldn't resist adding one of my favorite clips ever...

*I think I discovered this quote through Natalie Lloyd... and I love it!