Prince Charming and...Drizellastasia?

Most of us know the story of Cinderella. She is a beautiful young lady who fell on some hard luck and who had a nasty step-mother and two crazy step-sisters, Drizella and Anastasia. Despite the abuse and jealousy of her sisters, and with the help of the fairy-godmother and some supportive mice and dogs, she goes to the king’s ball where she meets prince charming and eventually, he finds Cinderella, puts the glass slipper on her foot, they get married….and live happily ever after.

Now imagine another story. A radically different story. Imagine the story of Cinderella through the lens of the gospel. Just combine the two evil step-sisters into one person named Drizellastasia. She has the worst attributes of both sisters combined- awkward, angry, bossy, abusive, envious, jealous, rude, and definitely not attractive. She gets asked to the ball but ends up making everyone upset, breaking everything, and not even able to meet Prince Charming because she caused so much trouble.

The next morning, she gets news that Prince Charming is coming to her house. Is that good news? Should Drizellastasia be scared?

Imagine Prince Charming coming to their house, knocking on the door. Cinderella gently opens the door with a beautiful smile and a quietly seductive, “hello!” He didn’t come for the beautiful, pretty, and perfect Cinderella.

He walks right past her.

The Prince has come and, instead, places the glass slipper on Drizellastasia’s massive, hairy, wart-filled, bunion disfigured, stinky feet, and asks her to marry him.

Now that would be a story!

Let’s go from fairy-tale to history. Jesus didn’t come for the healthy, but the sick; not for the righteous, but for the unrighteous; not for the clean, but for the unclean. We are not Cinderella. We are Drizellastasia…and oh, how Jesus loved us!

As Samuel Crossman wrote in a famous, old hymn:

“My song is love unknown, My Savior's love to me;

Love to the loveless shown, That they might lovely be.”

Amen and Amen.