Hyde in The Fairytale

 

“I love the part in fairy tales
That's very near the end
When all the kingdom cheers for this new queen;
And all is well and all is good
And everyone belongs,
And happily they're ever-aftering.

But when I enter the kingdom of dreams
And face the promise of all I can be
Will they see me as a heroine? 

Tell me, will they let me in?”

From the Artist: Kurt Bestor

Album: Rigoletto  from the 1993 movie, an adaptation of the opera

You must admit, most of us have believed in fairytales at one point in our childhood.  Some of the stories may have been terrifying, and others full of nonsense, and yet we loved to hear them over and over. The storybook bedtime ritual has been a staple for generations. Whether it was from a book or an oral recitation, a make-believe land or historic re-telling, the familiarity of traveling to places unknown before falling asleep was cathartic, relaxing the mind as it swept away the cares of our busy day.

Fast forward to adulthood... There is no one there to tuck you in and assure you that the boogeyman does not reside underneath your bed or in your closet. Somewhere along the road of growing up, we are expected to shake off all those silly, childish stories, pick up ourselves by the bootstraps and march forth as a stalwart soldier. No questions, no excuses, no turning back.

Except in many homes, the boogeyman isn’t green and slimy, but invisible and haunting. The monsters under the bed have crawled into your head; or much, much, worse scenarios.  And those "well adjusted" adults, and youth as well, that have been fortunate enough to erase those hobgoblins, or at least have figured out how to lock the closet tightly, well, they may not even believe it’s possible to still be bothered by such ridiculous dread.

I am here to assure you, that everyone has some sort of boogeyman. If 2020 did not raise them from their slumber, you are a much stronger human than most. We ALL have a dark side that we don’t want anyone else to see. Heck, we even manage to keep it hidden from ourselves. Until the rubber hits the road, and life is literally dangling before our eyes, and Truth is softly whispering – “just open the door to your heart and let Me in.”

I have always been able to relate to the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde stories. A part of me understands the concept in the depths of my being. I understand that the human condition is evil at heart. I believe the Bible reminds us that there is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. (- Romans3:10-11)  I understand that given our own way, we will ruin everything. Life falls apart, unless we choose to repair it daily. It is a constant struggle, a battle of the wills – do we choose what is right, or do we choose what is easy?

Even with the best of intentions, we can let things slip and fail someone, or ourselves. Even with an iron will, something somewhere is going to fall under your “perfection radar” and it may seem like the world is crumbling around you.

But, my dear reader – I assure you, that it is not your job to carry the world on your shoulders. It is not your job to keep spinning every plate that gets tossed your direction. It is not your job to remember where you hid the key to the closet of forgotten boogeymen. I don’t understand, then, what are we to do?

 

¹⁵ For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.  

¹⁶ Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. 

¹⁷ So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 

¹⁸ For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out.

 ¹⁹ For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. 

²⁰ Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 

²¹ So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand.                                    

 ²² For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, 

²³ but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members.  

  ²⁴ Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 

²⁵ Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.  (Romans 7:15-25)

That is the apostle Paul speaking. Do you see the immense struggle he is in? Even the super-apostle has problems keeping to the right path! The man who once fought to throw away the lives of countless Christians because he thought that was the righteous thing to do. You would think that because of his past, he would never stray from always choosing the right thing. Being a former persecutor, and all around bad guy, would be a good reason to fight the good fight and not go down the dark alleys ever again.

WE CAN”T RESIST the dark side. Not all by ourselves, anyway.

And our heavenly Father knows this.

 You are not omnipotent.

Do not follow your heart, for it will take you places you will never recover from.                                  

The Doorkeeper of your heart is just waiting for you to realize that you can’t do it all alone.                 

He is simply waiting for you to open up and let Him take care of you.

 

Every time you see shadows creeping up the stairs, get out your Flashlight.

Jesus said – I Am The Light of the world.  (John 8:12) 

 HE IS YOUR FLASHLIGHT!

 

Every time you feel the hairs on your arm stand in terror, call for Backup.

God tells us again and again -“I will never leave you, nor forsake you. Be strong and courageous.”  (Joshua 1:5-9) 

 HE IS YOUR BACKUP!

 

Every time you hear the rustling of specters by the windowsill, ring the bell for the Doorkeeper.

The Psalmist David writes – “Lift up your heads, you gates;

be lifted up, you ancient doors,

that the King of glory may come in.

8Who is this King of glory?

The Lord strong and mighty,

the Lord mighty in battle.

 

9Lift up your heads, you gates;

lift them up, you ancient doors,

that the King of glory may come in.

10Who is he, this King of glory?

The Lord Almighty—

He is the King of glory.”   (Psalm 24:6-10)

  

In Revelation 3:20, John writes what is given to him by the Lord God himself                               

“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock.

If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, 

I will come in, and eat with him and he with me!”

 HE IS YOUR DOORKEEPER.

 

In the fairytales of old, there is always someone who swoops down and rescues the wounded, the terrified, and the lost. Life isn't a fairytale, but it is your story, and every story has a villain, even if you are your own worst enemy. Fairytales as a child help us to understand the real bogeys that tend to pop up, catch us off guard, and inevitably tangle in our grown up lives.

 So as you recall the days gone by, (or even dream of such things) - of cozy nighttime stories snuggled safely in your beds; and as you walk day to day in the harsh reality of life, remember the Hope that is within us, patiently waiting our beck and call.                                            

Your neighbor isn’t the answer. Your spouse, special someone, your beautiful son or daughter, your sweet little Fluffy, your work title, and your social status can’t help you when demons come slithering in the back door. Only the Hero of a Lifetime can help you when all else fails. That Hero has written a story for the ages. He exceeds all figments of the human imagination, rescues even the darkest of souls, and will never, ever fail as the Doorkeeper of your heart.

All you have to do is ask.

Over and over, He will never tire of the plea –“just one more, pleeeeease?”

 

 

(And in true concert form, the adult equivalent of one more story – I give you – one more song, or two)

 

 

“A child in sweet duplicity
For innocence? Or slavery to nature
And the bents that haunt him straight out of the womb?
He doesn’t have to learn the things unseemly that his instinct brings
To carry like a burden from the cradle to the tomb
You’ll never have to teach him how to lie
If we are born in innocence, well, don’t you wonder why?
For selfishness already dwells inside
The birthright of Adam, the curse of the old man

Day and night
Jekyll and Hyde in the fairytale
This is much more frightening”   - Excerpts from: Theocracy’s  Hide In The Fairytale

 

“Come lift up your eyes and look into mine (Isaiah 45:22)                                                                    

Try to see what I see (2 Corinthians 5: 17) 

Your mind has not been a friend (Ephesians 4: 17-20)

It chokes you within and makes truth look like a demon (2 Corinthians 11: 14-15; 2 Timothy 4: 3-4)
Rewinding these memories, suffering every night
But I've been watching you
Hoping you would see the truth and run to the
light (John 8: 12)

When you say you're not ok
My heart it breaks to heal your pain (Psalm 147: 3)
I will erase your yesterday
(Psalm 103: 12)
You'll be ok
My love is greater than your mistake (Proverbs 10: 12; 1 Peter 4: 8)” - Excerpts from: Disciple’s Erase

 

 

Tales from the dark side of the nightstand

Written by: Sue Leerhoff

@Brick by Brick