Happily, Ever After?

I enjoyed fairy tales when I was young. I don't think I'm alone in this because those same stories continue to be passed on from generation to generation -- even turned into TV shows and feature films. Why so popular? Because in the end they all live happily, ever after. But experience teaches us that's not how real life works. Throughout our lives we will continue to struggle with various problems: sorrow and heartbreak, financial struggles, relationship problems, sickness and, finally, death. Whatever we may have thought as kids, fairy tales don't come true.

Or do they?

When I was a senior in high school, I wondered about life after high school. It seemed a distant land full of promise: no more term papers, no more daily assignments, no more rules and regulations, no more curfews.

But I soon discovered life after high school was work, and rush-hour traffic, bills, and uncertainties. Then came college and a whole new set of hurdles to jump. Each time I crossed a threshold from one phase to another, I've found the new phase was never quite as golden as I thought it would be. Finishing college, taking my first job, watching my bride walk down the aisle, hearing the doctor say the baby is on his way -- those new phases are full of promise and joy, but they aren't happily, ever after, are they?

I expect the same thing will be true going forward if, God willing, I see retirement and the later years of my life. Each phase will have plenty of troubles, trials, tears, and frustrations of its own.

So, the fairy-tale ending is not realistic, at least not for this life. But what if we step back and look at the larger picture? What happens after death?

The night before Jesus died, He made a fairy-tale-like promise to His disciples -- and to each of us. "In My Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to Myself, that where I am you may be also" (John 14:2-3).

God the Father is our Heavenly King. Jesus Christ is His Son, our Prince Charming. All of us as believers are the Cinderellas He raises from the dust to live with Him in His Kingdom.

On Judgment Day Jesus will return to take us home, and then with glorified bodies, we will live happily ever after in our Heavenly Father's house.

So, when you think about it, your life really is a fairy tale. We just won't get to that happily-ever-after part until Jesus returns to take us home. I think Paul had that fairy-tale ending in mind when he wrote, "I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us" (Romans 8:18).

A fairy-tale ending ... that's not quite what we expect from this life, is it?

It seems knowing the end would make the journey we're on now all the more satisfying. Maybe that's where we step out in faith and let God do what He would with our lives.

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Is It Just Me?

Over the years, I've become pretty cynical about what I read, watch, and hear. I do not believe there is such a thing as "unbiased" media. In today's world most media conveys a specific point of view, agenda, or call to action. The same "news" story reported on five different channels will offer five different conclusions. Corporations and governments alike employ a cadre of media specialists to provide "spin," so their point of view is portrayed as fact.

Over the years, I've looked for the "So what?" in what I hear, see, or read -- especially in the media.

I define the "So what?" as an action or attitude that the author wishes me to adopt.

For example, when watching a car commercial, the "So what?" is that I be moved to purchase that vehicle. Those "So whats?" are easy to spot.

When I watch a movie or TV show, the "So what?" may be a little harder to find, but it's still there. For example, any TV show that involves "ordinary" people singing, dancing, or performing has the "So what?" that each of us are talented, capable, and have an opportunity to win millions of dollars.

Ads promoting the lottery offer the "So what?" that you will be a hero to school kids as you spend your money on the lottery, which funds education. Some of these ads leave me feeling as if I am a terrible person who hates kids if I don't plunk down my dollars for them -- at least once in a while.

Now some of you may be saying to yourself, "So what?"

The "So what?" I want you to think about is to become a critical consumer of media. Too often we accept most everything we hear or read without thinking objectively about it. We buy into the mindset that "If it's on the internet, on the national news, or in the newspaper, then it must be true ... at least mostly." This also applies to hearing it from "live" sources as when we wholesale accept something because we heard it from a friend or family member. Suffice it to say, critical thinking should accompany us wherever we go.

As for me, I read the fine print, look for the angles, and will not send money to Africa because someone died and named me in his will.

This whole critical-thinking thing is something worthwhile to pass along to the next generation, too. The world's awash in hyperbole and trivial nonsense, and it's targeted (as it has been for years) at the very young as well. For young and impressionable minds, the world is full of choices like never before. Some are of value; many are not, and it's a huge help if by our input and experience we can help them see the difference.

As any guy knows, one priceless benefit that comes with age is the lesson gained from our hard-won experience. But let's not let these life-changing gems remain with us. Be sure to pass them on when you get a chance, but do so tactfully, in small, steady doses. As we all know, it's good medicine for those who hear it, but for some it may be hard to swallow.

When was the last time you heard something that made you ask, "So what?"?

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