Happily Ever After
Cinderella is found, the shoe fits, and she goes off to live with her prince… happily ever after
Reference: v.4 Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and run me through, or these uncircumcised fellows will come and run me through and abuse me.” But his armor-bearer was terrified and would not do it; so Saul took his own sword and fell on it. (TNIV Bible)
Explore: I grew up reading fairy tales about Princes and magic. I think my favourite was Cinderella.
A poor girl living in terrible circumstances, marginalised by her evil step-mother and sisters. It seemed that nothing good would ever come her way.
When she finally gets the chance to meet a wonderful prince, her time is cut short and she turns back to her horrid life. All that is left of her glorious moment is a glass slipper which falls off her foot as she dashes away.
Luckily the prince is not easily dissuaded and he hunts down his one true love who fits the glass slipper. Cinderella is found, the shoe fits, and she goes off to live with her prince… happily ever after.
We all like a good story, but only when it finishes happily ever after. Hollywood has picked up on this and we find that no matter what disasters befall a hero, they always seem to end happily ever after.
Application: Those of us who live in the real world know that our ‘happily ever after’ does not always come to us like a movie star finish. Disaster hits, seasons end, and pain lingers on.
Even for God’s anointed king, things do not end well. Committing suicide on a battle field, surrounded by his son’s bodies is far from a happily ever after.
God predicts sorrow as well as joy; pain as well as healing; and death as well as life. Saul was so far from God that he could not see the plan foretold. He chose his own path instead of following God’s.
Even on God’s path we experience hardship, but our future always has hope. No matter how our story ends, if we believe in God then eternity with Him will be the best ‘happily ever after’ we could ever imagine.
Prayer: Lord, when all around us feels helpless, may we draw our hope from You. Our ‘happily ever after’ may not look like a movie scene, but it holds more purpose than any film could ever give us. Amen.
What would your happily ever after look like?
This article was written by Linda Bailey
Linda started theological studies in 1999 in Australia. After working for ten years in various church ministries, she now works as the breakfast producer at 89.9 LightFM - the Christian radio station in Melbourne, Australia. She writes blogs every day about passages she is currently reading in the Bible. Follow her on Google Plus +Linda Bailey or Facebook by clicking the like button on the right of this page.