Who Will Call Them Princess?

This week my family and I are at Disney World. We came with my sister and her family, my parents and my husband’s parents. It’s been a dream come true for my kids to experience this with so many family members, one we’ll remember for years to come. I keep saying, “Get the camera out, we don’t want to miss anything!” Taking pictures on rides, eating treats, meeting Disney characters and watching fireworks, this place is one for making memories.

Jasmine and her cousin Elise all ready for a day at Disney.

My daughter especially is treated with extra attention. Everywhere we go, anytime we enter a park, a ride, or are even getting ready to leave, the attendant will say, “Hello, Princess!” or “Goodbye, Princess!” My daughter looked at me shyly yesterday with a grin on her face: “Everyone calls me princess here, mom.” I could tell she felt so special, so loved. And I told her, “I know, honey. You are so special.” In fact, my sister and I brought princess outfits, tiaras, and accessories for our girls to wear while we are here. Just yesterday morning, we laid them out with care and told our daughters that the fairy godmother must have came to our house during the night, knowing just what they would like. We spent the day at the park, my daughter dancing in her pink dress and tiara throughout the day. I videotaped her, not wanting to miss any of it. This childhood. This innocence. No one else may love her like I do; to me she is a princess. Priceless. 

I go to bed with thoughts of the day’s memories still lingering in my mind. 

And then I am awakened in the night: I must pray for Panama. I shake the grogginess from my mind as I start to pray. Nothing terribly profound. I pray for the girls. For their safety. Protection from harm. A better life. A loving home. As I pray, my mind calms and I drift off to sleep again.

This morning I awaken with Panama still on my mind. How do we balance this? So much beauty. So much suffering. All in this same world. 

This afternoon I read an article all about trafficking in central Florida. In the same area I am. This place of beauty touted to be the “Happiest place on earth.” “The place where dreams come true.” And I wonder: How do I reconcile this, Lord? These two extremes? If my daughter is a princess, what of these other girls? Girls who are trafficked, sold against their will? Beaten, abused in ways I can’t even comprehend? 

Who will call them princess?

Isaiah 45 tells us that God calls us by name. And that we are chosen. But I don’t believe that this is only true for me, or my family, or my daughter. I believe this is true for others. I believe this is true for the girls in Panama. And I also believe it is not enough to just stop there. To think: Oh, God knows, he’ll take care of it. I believe, as a Christian, it is my responsibility to increase my own awareness of what is happening around the world. It is not enough to just think someone else should do it. I must pray, I must give, and I must be willing to go. That is the balance. Am I to feel guilty about my life? No. Guilt does not motivate me. But I am to be convicted. I am to be aware. I am to sacrifice and look straight into the ugliness and not turn a blind eye to what is going on around the world, and sometimes in my own backyard. 

God calls each one of his beautiful girls Princess. They are as priceless to him as my daughter is to me. 

I want his heart. 

That is my prayer: Open my eyes. More of you, less of  me. 

“For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” 2 Corinthians 3:17