Transformative Journeys: Fairy Tales and the Gospel
Devotional
Sermon Summary
Sermon Clips
"Fred says that as far as he knows there is no time no culture which has not produced fairy tales and they have certain things in common that have something to teach us that we'll think about for a few moments as you reflect on your life in that greater story that you might be a part of one of them is in fairy tales there's always another world and the primary characteristic is not um that it contains particular beings elves or trolls or ogres or fairies or anything else." [00:01:22]
"Therefore we fix our eyes not on what is seen but what is unseen for what is seen how your body looks who's got the money who's got the power who's got the fame for what is seen is temporary but what is unseen what matters most love character values God is unseen and fairy stories remind us in a powerful way and so we say tell us a story that things hold together that there is a narrative that there is another world that our world has been in uh the words of one writer Charles Taylor disenchanted but that's not the way that things really are." [00:02:24]
"To the house where the children are playing hide-and-seek is just an ordinary house house in the story of Narnia little children go through a wardrobe they've been through it a 100 times before but all of a sudden for some reason this time it leads them into another realm just as the tent where Abraham and Sarah Laughed Until the tears ran down their cheeks was an ordinary tent Alice goes down a rabbit hole but this time she ends up in Wonderland Jacob the Grabber the deceiver goes to sleep in a certain place we don't know where maybe he'd been there a thousand times before with a stone for a pillow only this time there is a latter only this time there are beings that are descending and ascending from heaven and Jacob wakes up and says surely the Lord was in this place and I was not aware of it." [00:03:10]
"One of the marks of this world is that is quite a dangerous place in fairy tales you choose the wrong path you go through the wrong door you say the wrong words uh you make the wrong decision and disaster can result and of course our life is that way I think about times in my life as a dad where I did things or said things or didn't do things or didn't say things and I would give now anything in the world to have that moment back and so often when that happens it's not clear to us we just blunder into it the world is that way our world is that way and that element of Disguise of not being able to recognize clearly as part of our world." [00:06:04]
"Above all there are tales about transformation where all the creatures are revealed in the end as what they truly are the ugly duckling becomes a gray white swan the frog is revealed to be a prince the beautiful but Wicked Queen is unmasked in all her ugliness and Paul says and we who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord's Glory are being transformed into his image with ever increasing Glory which comes from the Lord who is the spirit that is the Unseen one and this is the great story this is what God is doing this is what's happening this is why your life matters more than you can imagine." [00:07:07]
"The fairy tale does not deny the existence of sorrow and failure the possibility of these is necessary to the joy of the Deliverance it denies in the face of much evidence if you will Universal final defeat giving a fleeting glimpse of joy joy beyond the walls of the world poignant as grief it is the mark of the good farer story or the higher more complete kind that however wild its events however fantastic or terrible the adventures it can give to child or man that hears it when the turn comes a catch of the breath a beat and a lifting of the heart near to or indeed accompanied by Tears as Keen as that given by any form of literary art." [00:09:15]
"Tolken goes on to write that the gospel itself contains a fair fairy story or perhaps the essence of all fairy stories except that in this case it is entered into history one last note on this story Rich Mau would sometimes read a little passage from The Book of Revelation and then tell a story from his Boyhood about the recognition of the Unseen the passage is revelation one where John writes that he sees someone like a son of man dressed in a robe reaching down to the feet to his feet the hair on his head was white like wool as white as snow this imagery would be familiar in that day white hair was associated with wisdom it was to be revered and honored and his eyes were like blazing fire his feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace furnace in his right hand he held Seven Stars coming out of his mouth with a sharp double-edged sword his words had great power and so his face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance." [00:10:22]
"When I saw him when I saw him when I saw him I fell at his feet as though dead then he placed his right hand on me and said do not be afraid I am the first and the last I am the living one I was dead and now look I'm alive forever and ever and I hold the keys of death and Hades Rich talked about a time when he was a little boy growing up a a Little Dutch town in Michigan and and one day when he was at school I think maybe in kindergarten so like 5 years old Santa Claus came and uh wanted one of the kids to come and sit in his lap and they were all sore afraid and he finally called up rich and Rich went to sit there and he was scared to death he was trembling and then Santa Claus pulled his beard away for just a moment and it was Mr Groot a kindly kindly man that rich knew from church and he said hey Rich don't be afraid." [00:11:07]
"John sees a vision of a being so powerful and glorious and holy that he faints dead away like somebody who had lost his life and then Jesus pulls him near and says hey hey John buddy don't be afraid it's me I was dead but now I'm alive and the keys the access to all good got him from my dad that is the story that God has written the God is writing that God will write better everything in the world on that story and the my in many ways wonderful in many ways so joyful in many ways so deeply broken story will be healed by being part of that story and it's closer than we." [00:12:25]
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"Therefore we fix our eyes not on what is seen but what is unseen for what is seen how your body looks who's got the money who's got the power who's got the fame for what is seen is temporary but what is unseen what matters most love character values God is unseen and fairy stories remind us in a powerful way and so we say tell us a story that things hold together that there is a narrative that there is another world that our world has been in uh the words of one writer Charles Taylor disenchanted but that's not the way that things really are." [00:02:24]
"To the house where the children are playing hide-and-seek is just an ordinary house house in the story of Narnia little children go through a wardrobe they've been through it a 100 times before but all of a sudden for some reason this time it leads them into another realm just as the tent where Abraham and Sarah Laughed Until the tears ran down their cheeks was an ordinary tent Alice goes down a rabbit hole but this time she ends up in Wonderland Jacob the Grabber the deceiver goes to sleep in a certain place we don't know where maybe he'd been there a thousand times before with a stone for a pillow only this time there is a latter only this time there are beings that are descending and ascending from heaven and Jacob wakes up and says surely the Lord was in this place and I was not aware of it." [00:03:10]
"One of the marks of this world is that is quite a dangerous place in fairy tales you choose the wrong path you go through the wrong door you say the wrong words uh you make the wrong decision and disaster can result and of course our life is that way I think about times in my life as a dad where I did things or said things or didn't do things or didn't say things and I would give now anything in the world to have that moment back and so often when that happens it's not clear to us we just blunder into it the world is that way our world is that way and that element of Disguise of not being able to recognize clearly as part of our world." [00:06:04]
"Above all there are tales about transformation where all the creatures are revealed in the end as what they truly are the ugly duckling becomes a gray white swan the frog is revealed to be a prince the beautiful but Wicked Queen is unmasked in all her ugliness and Paul says and we who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord's Glory are being transformed into his image with ever increasing Glory which comes from the Lord who is the spirit that is the Unseen one and this is the great story this is what God is doing this is what's happening this is why your life matters more than you can imagine." [00:07:07]
"The fairy tale does not deny the existence of sorrow and failure the possibility of these is necessary to the joy of the Deliverance it denies in the face of much evidence if you will Universal final defeat giving a fleeting glimpse of joy joy beyond the walls of the world poignant as grief it is the mark of the good farer story or the higher more complete kind that however wild its events however fantastic or terrible the adventures it can give to child or man that hears it when the turn comes a catch of the breath a beat and a lifting of the heart near to or indeed accompanied by Tears as Keen as that given by any form of literary art." [00:09:15]
"Tolken goes on to write that the gospel itself contains a fair fairy story or perhaps the essence of all fairy stories except that in this case it is entered into history one last note on this story Rich Mau would sometimes read a little passage from The Book of Revelation and then tell a story from his Boyhood about the recognition of the Unseen the passage is revelation one where John writes that he sees someone like a son of man dressed in a robe reaching down to the feet to his feet the hair on his head was white like wool as white as snow this imagery would be familiar in that day white hair was associated with wisdom it was to be revered and honored and his eyes were like blazing fire his feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace furnace in his right hand he held Seven Stars coming out of his mouth with a sharp double-edged sword his words had great power and so his face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance." [00:10:22]
"When I saw him when I saw him when I saw him I fell at his feet as though dead then he placed his right hand on me and said do not be afraid I am the first and the last I am the living one I was dead and now look I'm alive forever and ever and I hold the keys of death and Hades Rich talked about a time when he was a little boy growing up a a Little Dutch town in Michigan and and one day when he was at school I think maybe in kindergarten so like 5 years old Santa Claus came and uh wanted one of the kids to come and sit in his lap and they were all sore afraid and he finally called up rich and Rich went to sit there and he was scared to death he was trembling and then Santa Claus pulled his beard away for just a moment and it was Mr Groot a kindly kindly man that rich knew from church and he said hey Rich don't be afraid." [00:11:07]
"John sees a vision of a being so powerful and glorious and holy that he faints dead away like somebody who had lost his life and then Jesus pulls him near and says hey hey John buddy don't be afraid it's me I was dead but now I'm alive and the keys the access to all good got him from my dad that is the story that God has written the God is writing that God will write better everything in the world on that story and the my in many ways wonderful in many ways so joyful in many ways so deeply broken story will be healed by being part of that story and it's closer than we." [00:12:25]
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