My parents came over for dinner last night, and while my boyfriend and I were sitting at the table with them, the conversation turned to politics. We started talking about, among other things, whether setting up a democracy in a middle eastern country would work, given the cultural norms and the leadership history of that country. My dad said (in his wise way) that "the only government that will EVER work is a benevolent dictatorship. "Elaborate," I demanded. "How would Jesus rule?" he responded. And he had a good point. The only governing model that we fallible humans can ever thrive under is a truly benevolent dictatorship - in other words, we are built to be fulfilled completely by, to trust, to follow, to obey, a 100% GOOD king. Imagine it: if you knew without a single doubt that every law, every mandate, every decision your king made was FOR YOUR BENEFIT and for no selfish or political reason, it would be easier to trust and obey, right?
The beautiful thing is that we, as Christians, are already serving and following that kind of king. What's even better is that, as we discussed in the last post, we are not just lowly subjects of this king. We are his DAUGHTERS, meaning PRINCESSES of this king (guys, you are sons - princes). We've been given access to his presence, his palace, his undivided attention and LOVE.
So why do so many of us continue to act like we are slaves to a judgemental, selfish, condemning ruler? I think that as humans we are so used to mistrusting and doubting the motives of the leaders who say they have our best interests at heart but who consistently demonstrate that they are self-serving, sinful human beings. So we take one of two routes: we rebel against our leaders because we think (and often it's true) that we should protect ourselves from their apathy or - at worst - their selfish harmful decisions. We vote someone new into office, hoping he or she will be more trustworthy. We criticize, hypothicize, opinionize, and look for any way to protect ourselves from their decisions. Or, alternatively, we decide to follow a leader unwaveringly despite his demonstrated untrustworthiness, calling it faith or loyalry, and excusing the obvious risks. When they fail to make good on their promises, we justify it despite the pain it causes. When they do something that harms society we justify it despite the pain it causes. We make the human leader our "god," we make the government our "god," hoping that if we are good enough or faithful enough that he or she will, in the end, do right by us. We don't really trust, we're just sick of being cynical and unsatisfied.
And then we turn around and look at God the same way. He's our "king" - he made the rules, he enforces them, he rewards those who play by them. And we know we're going to fail at some point to live by the rules, so we either (a) distance ourselves from him, put up walls of protection, and keep looking for less daunting calls to living, or (b) we blindly decide to follow our king, hoping that despite his arbitrarily hurtful or confusing decisions, if we're good enough or faithful enough, that we'll be rewarded in the end. We hope for the best but fear, all along, that we might be disappointed or abandoned. After all, that's what usually happens when you depend on someone.
What a shame. We have been given full access to a king who invites us not only to trust him and test him and see his goodness for what it is - we have also been invited to spend all day, every day, sitting at his feet and lavishing in his perfect love! But who can blame us for forgetting this truth, for doubting God's goodness, for fearing abandonment and disappointment? On earth, that is what following a leader entails!
Imagine this: you are royalty. Every morning, you awake in a fluffy warm bed to the sounds of birds singing a happy song. Your handmaiden brings you your favorite breakfast - for me, hot coffee, eggs, toast, sausage, grapefruit. "The King sends this with his love," she tells you. You slip your feet into slippers made of clouds and you are handed a gown of the finest silk, embroidered with the most exquisite gold thread. It is breathtaking. "The King had this made just for you," your dressing maid tells you. "He thinks you're the most beautiful creature he's ever made, and he thought this would make you smile." You dress, turning in the mirror, marveling at the way the hue of the gown makes you glow. "The King is waiting to see you, he's been up for hours just waiting to talk to you and to see you!" your maid says excitedly. "Me?" you think. "What could the king want with ME?" Wondering what he wants to say, you hurry to the throne room. The huge double doors open, and you stagger, temporarily blinded by the gorgeous sparkling light that fills the room. Beautiful music plays softly, and in the distance you see a figure rise. "My DARLING!" a soft, strong voice rings out. "I've been waiting so eagerly to see you, to spend time with you! Has anyone else told you today how beautiful and loved and special you are? Because my deepest wish is that I might be be the first to remind you!" You can see now, and you're stunned. The KING, the king of everything, is running toward you, arms outstretched, a huge grin on his face. It seems like he can see nothing else in the room but you. He cannot tear his eyes away from you. He is absolutely enthralled, and he cannot hide his love.
He reaches you, and embraces you. It feels like you're melting into warm butter, and every tension, every worry, everything disappears as he wraps his arms around you and squeezes you tight. Finally willing himself to unlock his loving hug, he holds you at arms length. His eyes sparkle. "My goodness," he says. "Is it just me or do you become more stunningly gorgeous every time I see you? Come, sit with me, I want to talk with you." He ushers you to his throne and offers you a velvet seat at his side. For hours he listens to you - every thought, every confession, every concern, every burden that you've been carrying - he listens. When you talk about your pain, he holds you and cries tears as you do. When you talk about your joy he claps his hands in delight and suggests a celebratory feast be held for every single moment of happiness you've experienced. When you confess your failures, he says "thank you, my child, for sharing that with me. I hope you know you can trust me to help you, you need only ask me. And more than anything, remember how much I love you and how nothing you can ever do will ever change that."
Before you know it, it's evening. You have spent the entire day with your king, and he still has eyes for only you. "Are you tired, my love?" he asks. "Hungry, cold, feeling insecure or afraid about anything? I want to help you."
Bowled over by his love, your heart desires only one thing. To learn how to honor and love this king in such a way that he will know, without a doubt, that you trust him and love him in return. Without reservation. Without insecurity. Without fear. You want to live in a way that merits this kind of unconditional care and love.
Right? I know I do.
People will disappoint us and ignore us. People will say that they love us and then turn around and hurt us. People will tell us we're important and then treat us like we're utter failures, reminding us of our flaws and withholding their love because of those flaws.
But our king? He doesn't do that. EVER. You are the most beautiful, precious, important thing in this world to him, and he spends every moment longing to demonstrate his love and provision to you, making you stronger and better and more beautiful every day. He celebrates the mere fact that you EXIST.
Time for some princess lessons, huh? I don't know about you, but for me, a love like that motivates me to learn who I am in HIS EYES, to believe it and become it.
I don't want to be the type who says "Um, no thanks, I'd rather hang out in the streets outside the king's castle. I know he wants to clothe me in beautiful gowns and gaze upon me like I'm his treasure. I know he has a feast in there, prepared just for me. I know his deepest desire is to calm my fears and fulfill my heart's desires. But...I'm too dirty. I did some pretty bad stuff today. I don't look or act like a princess, so no matter what he says, I am going to stay out here and keep trying to be good enough on my own. Maybe someday I'll be worthy of all the gifts the king is offering me. For now...no thanks. I have a lot to do out here, lots of filth to sort through."
No! Who would say such a thing? But every day, we do. I DO! I turn to my friends, my boyfriend, my family, my earthly leaders. "I'm beautiful, right?" "I'm important, right?" "You'll protect me, right?" "You'll forgive me, right?" "You'll never leave me, right?" And sometimes the answer is yes. The next minute it's no. We are left confused, broken, insecure, unhappy. All the while, the King is hanging a sign on his castle: "CATHERINE: I LOVE YOU AND I WANT TO BE YOUR EVERYTHING. YOU ARE A PRINCESS, IN CASE YOU DIDN'T KNOW. COME ON IN AND EXPERIENCE GOODNESS IN THE PUREST SENSE!!!"
But I sit outside the walls, sorting through piles of filth and looking around me in hopes that others will say that I matter.
Sisters, we cannot continue like this. We are nobility. Prepare to shed your worn-out rags, because we're going to enter that castle. It's time.
We are princesses, and it's time to start living like we are. Next time: Princess 101.
