I’ve noticed throughout the years, we as humans, have a very loose interpretation of love. We tend to use the phrase “I love” for so many material things we own or do. In example, I love my car, I love my phone, I love my new shoes, or I love this song. Now, when we use this phrase to express how we feel about our possessions, I feel it starts to lose its meaning. I am not saying this is wrong, but for myself, I like to only use the term “I love” to express how I feel for other humans like my family, for God, and for really close friends.
Growing up in the 90’s I was subjected to a lot of Disney movies where the plot of the story usually entailed a prince or princess finding or searching for true love. Growing up with two sisters meant watching Cinderella or Beauty and the Beast, but Aladdin, now this was a movie I could watch. I’m sure you all know Aladdin was about a young man growing up in the streets, dreaming of something better, something worth his wild. He dreamt of life inside the palace walls, because it looked so magnificent and wonderful. It’s even what he tells the young beautiful gal he meets in the market before he finds out she is actually the princess who lives inside the palace walls. Now the story continues, he finds the genie, and uses Genie to turn him into a prince so he can have a chance with Jasmine. The problem with this is, Aladdin is actually using an identify that is not his own, a false self, while trying to fulfill his desires. He uses the false self because he believes he will be undesirable to Jasmine if he isn’t the perfect prince. The law and the people tell Aladdin that he is merely a street rat and the princess desires so much more.
The word identity and desire is used more often than not in our everyday life and on the world race. To find our identity we need to find our true selves, find who we are, and find who God created us to be. Now, this is where is gets hard. God created us a certain way, but thanks to people, thanks to society, thanks to entertainment from Hollywood, and thanks to the lies satan tells us; we usually start to believe we need to be someone or something they want us to be, instead of who God created us to be. We have desires, but we start to believe (through lives experiences) that we can’t get what we desire because we are not desirable. Once we think that we are undesirable we decide to put on a false self.
As a boy watching these movies or shows gave me the idea of finding a beautiful women to fall deeply in love with and live happily ever after. I wanted so badly to find the fairytale life, but after searching and searching I came to realize this fairytale life was fleeting away. Slowly getting farther and farther away as I grew older. The circumstances of life, the failed relationships, the rejections, the alcohol, the loneliness, and the fear; finally showed me this “fairytale” life was never going to be accessible. It’s exactly what it is, “A FairyTale.” It’s not real; it’s all made up.
Searching aimlessly for a love I worthy of was turning out to be very hard, because of the false self. It was starting to show as useless. It was starting to hurt me personally because I was searching for love in all the wrong places. The false self was defeating me with lies, it was telling me I wasn’t worthy, it was telling me to just settle with whatever works, and telling me I wasn’t desirable or lovable. It was a ploy to kill my dreams and desires, but luckily there was enough light for my hope to be restored.
Whats cool about Aladdins story is how he didn’t give up hope or his desire. When he was almost defeated, when Jafar was in control of his friends, and when it looked like he was about to lose the girl he loves. His faithful magic carpet saves him and brings hope back to him. The plan to get rid of Aladdin had been ruined. Now with some of his hope restored, he flies back, defeats Jafar, saves the girl, saves his friends, and everything ends on such a happy note. How else would it end? Am I right?
Now, I am sure you are wondering where I am going with this? You’re probably wondering if I got the beautiful woman to love? Wondering if I found my true self?
Here’s the scoop, I thought I was defeated, but things in my life started to turn around. The light started shining brighter and my hope was being restored. You see God was with me all along, but since I was focused on the lies from others and my false self, I was unable to see my true self. The true self that God created me to be. Now that I found my true self in God, it has shown me what true love is. It showed me the truth that God loves us all, loves us immensely; he loves us so much he gave us free will. He wants us to choose to love him because love CANNOT be forced.
Now, Aladdin helps show us that true love doesn’t matter if you’re a prince or a street rat, it shows us that to the right someone we are desirable, and it shows us that it is much better to be who we are. Jasmine like the adventurous, daring street rat and Aladdin found that him being himself is all she wanted. So BEEEE yourself.
The question about the beautiful woman to love? That’s going to have to wait for NOW!
Until next time……….
Psalm 86:15 But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.
