Rescuing the Damsel in Distress

   When you think of a Disney Princess what do you think of? She is someone who either has a problem or is rich. She is someone who is strong in her own way, could be the daughter of royalty, and could be married to a prince. One other thing I think of is a damsel in distress.

   I don’t know about you but whenever I watched the old Disney princess movies I would think to myself: “why do these girls need men to save them? Why can’t they just do something for themselves?” But, now that I’m looking back, I realize each Disney princess had their own strengths.

   I mean, think about it. Cinderella worked so hard, went to a ball, wasn’t looking for a prince but he found her. Belle did not let others choose who she would be, she did not follow the crowd, she did not marry Gaston even though she could have had a comfortable life with him, and she gave the Beast a chance when she could have chosen to ride him off like everyone else did. Tiana was willing to work hard to see her dream come true, she did not just expect someone to do her work for her, and she saw that there was a difference between what she wanted and what she needed (basically I see her story as what we want vs. what God has planned for us, in other words God always gives us what we need). There are so many more examples; but it is important to realize that, because the princesses have strengths, they also have weaknesses that they need rescued from.

   It seems like Disney Princesses are weak when looking at the movies. I mean, in almost every movie, a prince has to come along and save the girl. Some examples would be: Ariel needing rescued from Ursula, Rapunzel needing rescued from Mother Gothel, and Aurora needing rescued from her deep sleep and Maleficent. But, when I thought about it, the girl needing rescued isn’t such a bad thing. It just proves the message that we need each other. We need to be willing to ask for help when we need it. That is why I see the Princesses needing rescued as a good thing. For those of you who still need convincing about weaknesses being a good thing look up 2 Corinthians 12:9.

   One final thing I want to point out about princess movies is that there is always one underlying theme: love. Whether it is love between a prince and a princess, between parents and a princess, or between a friend and a princess love is a major theme. While the world will not admit it, this proves that we need each other. Humans need to feel loved and need to help one another. God designed us that way. He wants us to love each other no matter what; and to help one another. God also wants us to love him; because he loves us and created us.

   So how do princess movies relate to us? We need to look for the lessons in our lives and the stories we know. We need to use our strengths for God’s glory. We all need rescued every once in a while. Even if we don’t want to admit it, we need help and love. We also need to love others and be willing to sacrifice ourselves, just as Jesus sacrificed himself for us. Which leads to my final point: we need to be rescued from this world. Jesus died on the cross for us so that we could be saved. We just have to accept him into our heart.

   2 Corinthians 12:9, Matthew 22:36-40, Colossians 3:23-25

   P.S. I realize that some girls in the image I have used are not princesses; but all the girls in the picture needed rescued from problems.