Series: Jesus And Fairy Tales

Unshakable Hope For A Better Life

Deep inside, most of us suspect our life could be better. Jesus promised abundant life, but Dr. Mike Ladra explains that it isn’t automatic, and that we often block it ourselves. Drawing on C. S. Lewis’s story of Eustace, the boy who became a dragon, he shows how a better life takes better thinking, since our thoughts shape who we become. It also takes better choices, because we tend to repeat our history until we stop making excuses. And it means guarding our hearts against the materialism that drains our spiritual power.

How to Stop Wishing You Were Someone Else

Have you ever wished you were someone else? Dr. Mike Ladra looks at the real message hidden in Snow White: the story isn’t about romance, it’s about envy. It’s the sin that turned a beautiful queen into a murderer and moved the religious leaders to crucify Jesus. He describes the warning signs of envy and why the comparison game is one we always lose. He also explains how to break free: take your eyes off other people, stop letting others’ opinions define you, and remember that to Jesus, you are a treasure.

How to Encourage Yourself When It Looks Hopeless

Is there someone or something in your life you’ve labeled “hopeless”? Using the story of Humpty Dumpty, Dr. Mike Ladra reminds us that even when no one else can put our broken pieces back together, God can. He shares how he went from atheist to believer while studying the evidence for the resurrection. He also tells the story of a man given no hope who clung to Jesus’s promise, “With God, all things are possible.” He shows how to take responsibility for our own encouragement, stop calling people “hopeless” and call them “challenging” instead, and decide to do whatever it takes.

How To Recover From Bad Choices!

We all make bad choices, and sometimes they come back to haunt us. Using Little Red Riding Hood, Dr. Mike Ladra shows that bad choices don’t make you a bad person, and they don’t have to be the end of your story. He explains why the wolf in fairy tales stands for Satan, who is prowling for someone to devour. He then shows how to rebound: guard your mind against the thoughts that lead to bad choices, stop taking the bait of temptation, stop making excuses, and when the warning bell rings, run.

How To Rise Above Someone’s Bad Behavior!

Why should we treat people better than they treat us? Even Freud called Jesus’s command “insane.” Using Cinderella, Dr. Mike Ladra shows that the story is really about rising above cruel treatment, and that it carries the message of Luke 6. Cinderella chose kindness instead of revenge, forgave day after day instead of keeping a record of wrongs, and stayed thankful and optimistic when life was hard. Dr. Ladra invites us to take “the road less traveled”: mercy instead of getting even, through the power of Christ living in us.