The King
and
the Girl
Steve Nelson
BtoZ Publishing
El Paso, Texas
The King and the Girl
Copyright 2011 by Steve Nelson
725 Montclair Dr.
El Paso, TX 79932
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted in any form, by electronic means, photocopying, or otherwise, without prior permission of the author.
All Scripture quotations included in the body of the book are from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (TM), NIV Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
All Scripture quotations included in the Verses for Reflection section are from the Holy Bible, New International Version Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers. All rights reserved.
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The King and the Girl
Entrusting Yourself and Your Needs
It Takes Two
I know that God loves us, but there is a lot about His love that I don’t understand. I don’t understand how He could let us lose our baby daughter seconds before she could take her first breath. I don’t understand how He could allow my heart to get ripped from my chest in a broken relationship. I don’t understand how some people—some of you—were born into homes where their parents didn’t care and treated them like garbage. I don’t understand sickness, disease, and deformity. I know that God is love, but I don’t know how that plays out in life sometimes.
I look forward to going to heaven and just falling into the arms of Jesus and sobbing for a while—a long while. And then I want to sit on the couch in God’s living room and explain to Jesus just how it felt to be me, because quite frankly, I’m not sure He really understands how hard it can be at times. I want to be comforted by the tears of compassion that fall from Jesus’ face as He sits and listens. I know that is not doctrinally sound. It is messed up thinking. I’m just saying that it feels that way to me. Do you ever feel that way?
Here’s another question for you. Have you ever wondered what it feels like to be God? We tend to evaluate God’s love for us. Deep in the recesses of our minds we accuse Him of not loving us enough, and we are painfully aware of how it feels to be us. But have we ever considered how God feels about our love toward Him?
I’d like to share a story with you. It is a beautiful story. It is also deeply troubling. In spite of how painful this story will get, I think it will help you understand the love of God in a completely new way. At least that is how it has impacted me.
Once upon a time, there was a wealthy king. All the riches of the land, of the world even, belonged to him. He had palaces and great wonders that he had built—thousands of acres of land, treasure houses of gold and silver, and the finest collection of art that had ever been assembled.
He was also powerful. Whatever he wanted he got. His servants and officials were at his beck and call and he could say a single word—one sole command—and it was as good as done.
He was kind and gentle. You might think that such riches and power would be sure to eventually corrode a man’s character, but this man, this king, was no ordinary man. He excelled in kindness, compassion, and humility.
I suppose I should mention that he was also good looking—ruggedly handsome and the desire of all the maidens in the land.
By this time you probably get the idea, but I will just add that the king was also well respected. He was wise and fair. He led the kingdom well and never before had there been a king who had been so well loved by all the people.
One day the king decided to go for a stroll. As he went through the town, the people shouted warm greetings and waved, and the little children ran up to him and gave him hugs. The people were happy and he was happy. It was simply a beautiful day to be alive, especially in the kingdom.
After the king and his men had walked for about three miles they came along side a large barren field. Off in the distance something caught the king’s eye. At first he thought it was the carcass of an animal that had been dragged off the road. As he got closer, he saw movement. Before he had time to hypothesize what it could be, he saw that it was alive. Then in horror, he realized what it was. It was a child—a newborn. She was covered in her blood and afterbirth and couldn’t have been more than a day old. He tenderly turned the child onto her back and carefully wiggled his fingers under her frail body. As he picked her up, he realized that her placenta was still hanging from the attached umbilical cord.
His officials watched intently as their king awkwardly struggled to pick up the whole mess at once. All of them immediately recognized that this was no child of the kingdom. They could tell by her color and facial structure that she was a child of Darmore—their enemy. No one from the kingdom would ever treat a child in such a cruel manner. Not only had they left her to die, but they didn’t even bother to wrap her in a blanket or place her in a box. In all likelihood, she had been thrown from the road and left to die, without the slightest hint of compassion.
Everyone knew that the king would treat the baby kindly, but no one knew exactly what to expect. They watched in wonder as the king held the baby up toward the heavens. After a long pause, he spoke. Just one word. “Live!”
That was all his officials needed to hear. They knew that from that moment forward this child would have everything she could ever need. She would live in the palace and would be tended to day and night. And that is exactly what happened.
They brought her back to the palace and found a woman to nurse her. She quickly grew healthy and strong and all the people in the palace treated her as a child of the king. Her time there quickly passed from days into months and eventually into years.
She played in the palace courtyards with the other children and, sometimes, when the king was walking by, he would stop and talk to them, call them by name, laugh with them, and give out hugs. Occasionally he would even stop to play games with them.
After many years, the child became a beautiful young woman. The king took special note of her and started spending more time with her. It is hard to explain love, but the king was mysteriously attracted to her. Although it is beyond comprehension, let me try to explain his feelings for her.
He wanted to be merciful to her. Just as years before he had taken care of her in her broken state, he knew that on the inside she was still broken. She had been traumatized by the rejection of her parents, and she needed to be loved. More than anything she needed to be loved.
He longed to have a companion, someone with whom he could share the beauties of his kingdom. He wanted a friend—someone with whom he could enjoy the rest of his life.
He relished the idea of helping her become something special—to take this child of the enemy and give her a completely different heritage—she could be a child of the kingdom. A chosen one. Holy and pure. He wanted her to be free from the treacherous ways of her own people. She was treated well in the kingdom, but no one else would marry a child of the enemy. She needed him.
He wanted to transform her to be like himself in character. He had already done much for her, but now that she was grown and could make her own choices, he wanted her to follow him and to embrace the ways of the kingdom.
He viewed her as a beautiful jewel. In a treasure chest—no—in all the jewelry in all the treasure chests in the kingdom, she was the most precious gem—the most beautiful to him.
And, of course, he wanted to be one with her.
After waiting an appropriate amount of time, which seemed far too long to him, he asked her to be his wife, his queen.