Love that can melt a frozen heart...

Today's thought: Love that can melt a frozen heart—sacrificial love and Disney.

John 15:13, "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends."
John 3:16, "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
1 John 4:8, "Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love."
1 John 3:16, "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters."

My daughter is six. She is obsessed with the movie "Frozen." Perhaps all six-year-old girls are obsessed with this movie. In my house we have seen the movie a million times. We know all the songs and most of the dialogue. If you've ever had to say to your child, "Stop quoting the movie. It's annoying!" then you know right where we're at with it.

The film Frozen takes place in the Kingdom of Arendelle, where Princess Elsa has the power of freezing and creating ice and snow. The Princess' gift is hard to control, especially around her sister, Anna. So Elsa isolates herself in her room for fear of hurting Anna with her increasing power. But Elsa struggles to control her powers. After an incident where Elsa accidently freezes the kingdom, she flees to the mountains.
Anna chases after Elsa, but because Elsa is afraid she could hurt Anna, she demands that she leave. Elsa loses control of her power again, accidentally hitting Anna in the heart. A family of trolls, who greatly understand this kind of deep magic, tell Anna that only "an act of true love" can save her from death.

In a scene near the end of the movie, Anna sacrifices herself for Elsa when Elsa is attacked by those who are afraid of her power.

"Anna," Elsa asks, "you sacrificed yourself for me?"

"I love you." Anna replied.

Olaf, Anna's snowman sidekick, remembering the Trolls prescription, says, "An act of love will thaw a frozen heart!"

"An act of true love will thaw a frozen heart." says Elsa. "Love will thaw … love … of course. Love!" [Frozen, Director, Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee, Disney, 2013]

It's devotion time with my daughter. We're talking about the love God has for us. It is a sacrificial love. A love that sacrificed our Savior Jesus upon a cross to save us. True love sacrifices; God's love is true. I wonder if I'm getting through to her. I'm rambling. "Do you understand, sweetheart?" I ask.
"Yes Daddy. It's like the movie. An act of true love can throw a frozen heart."
I say, "Exactly."
"Did God thaw your heart, Daddy?"
"Yes, baby. Daddy's heart was as hard as stone. God's love melted it."
"And God thawed it with His love..." she says to herself.
And for first and probably the last time, I think, 'Thank you Disney!'

Ezekiel 36:26, "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh."