This is the first of five connected stories which I am going to post – I wrote them all as “Life Lesson assignments” when I was in the Bible study 5 Aspects of Woman (EXCELLENT STUDY), intending to one day share them with my daughter and start teaching her about Biblical Womanhood. This aspect is “The Mistress of the Domain.”

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Once upon a time in a land far away, but very much like our own, there lived a simple peasant girl named Eva. Eva lived all alone in a small shack in a poor village, and went about her daily tasks never thinking much about who she was.

One year on her birthday, a knock sounded loudly at the door of her dirty one-room shack. Eva timidly opened the door, and gasped with surprise when she saw the man in the brightly colored uniform. A messenger from the castle – at her own house! As Eva pulled back in surprise, and the messenger laid a gentle hand on her arm. “Eva the Peasant?” “Yes,” Eva replied. “I come to bring you a birthday gift from the king. He sent strict instructions that it should be delivered to you.”

Eva was surprised, but even more shocked to see the gorgeous, golden box in the man’s hands. It was covered with the most beautiful jewels she had ever seen, and engraved in the top was her own name! The box shone in the sun, and Eva began to feel a bit dizzy. “That’s for me?” Eva asked in surprise. “Are you sure I am the right Eva?” “Indeed,” replied the messenger. “Happy birthday from the King.” With that, he turned on his polished heel and walked away, leaving Eva stunned in the doorway, holding her treasure.

Eva closed the door with shaking hands and walked to the table. A velvety scarlet ribbon was tied around the box, and beneath the bow she noticed an envelope bearing the insignia of the royal family. This must be a dream, Eva thought. She gingerly touched the bow and slowly pulled the envelope free. Inside she found a handwritten note in beautiful script.

My dearest Eva – happy birthday! I have waited many years to deliver this special gift to you. I have had it here in the castle since the day you left, waiting for the perfect day to bring it to you.

Inside this box are five locked compartments. Each compartment contains apiece of lost treasure which I long to restore to you. In order to receive the first key, you need to visit the Wise Woman who lives within the castle walls. She will tell you more.

I will watch for you from the castle window -I am as anxious as you probably are for you to open your treasures! I know this has brought many confusing questions to your mind, but all will be answered in time.

Sincerely,
King Adon

Eva read the note over and over again. The King knows who I am… knows my name? He kept this since the day I left? It was just too much for her to grasp. She moved her hands across the lid of the box, feeling the cool metal and the gems beneath her fingers. She slid her hands to the corners of the box and gingerly lifted the lid. Just as the king had explained in his note, five small compartments filled the box, each with a golden keyhole.

A few hours later, Eva stood outside of the castle walls. Her knees were quaking and threatening to give out from under her. Her hands were sweaty and she struggled to keep a grip on her treasure box, which she had wrapped in rough cloth and tucked under her arm. She raised a shaking hand and knocked on the ornately carved wooden door. The gatekeeper looked her up and down but didn’t seem suspicious or surprised when Eva asked for a meeting with the Wise Woman. When the Wise Woman came, she smiled broadly and took Eva’s elbow in her hand, saying. “Oh, my dear Eva! So glad that you have come this afternoon. Come back to my house and we will have a cup of tea.”

Sitting inside the Wise Woman’s house, Eva carefully unwrapped the golden box. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” the Wise Woman said. “Yes – what is it? And why did the king send such a treasure to me?” Eva asked. “Well, that is a long story. Why don’t I get you another cup of tea and some of my special honey cookies, and I will begin as soon as we are settled in some softer chairs.” Eva nodded and hungrily nibbled on the cookies as the Wise Woman filled her teacup, and then followed her into a comfortable room, sitting in an overstuffed chair near the crackling fireplace.

The Wise Woman reached into the side table drawer and withdrew a gleaming, golden
key tied on a scarlet ribbon that matched the one on Eva’s box. Eva’s hands began to
sweat again. The Wise Woman handed her the key and said, “Why don’t you unlock that
first compartment, dear? We’ll see what’s inside.”

Eva trembled as she fit the key inside the first compartment’s golden lock. With a soft click, the key turned and the compartment opened. Inside, on the softest white velvet that Eva could imagine, laid a sparkling diamond tiara. Tears came to the corners of Eva’s eyes. The Wise Woman had been watching her closely and asked Eva why she was crying. “Well, I’m not sure,” replied Eva. “I guess because it is so beautiful, but also because the king must not realize who I am. I can’t wear this with my rags. He must be thinking of someone else. I’m just Eva the Peasant, and this is obviously for a princess.”

The Wise Woman handed her a handkerchief and said nothing while Eva wiped her eyes. “My dear,” she finally said, “you said the king must not realize who you are, but I’m afraid you’re mistaken. The fact is that you don’t realize who you are.” The room was silent except for the soft crackling of the fire. Eva finally said, “What do you mean? I am Eva the Peasant, aren’t I?” The next moments seemed frozen in time as the Wise Woman told Eva the most amazing thing she had ever heard. Eva had been born as royalty – she was born to rule! “Eva, you were born to be a grand princess. Elegant but humble, refined but graceful. Ruling the kingdom kindly and fairly, bringing order, feeding the hungry, helping the King. This tiara represents who you really are – the beautiful crown of our kingdom, with authority to rule given by the King himself.”

Eva listened quietly and then looked down at her rags. “But, if that is true… why have I been a peasant? Why am I wearing these rags? Didn’t the King love me?” The Wise Woman sighed. “Eva, he loved you deeply. He loves you still – why do you think he would keep this glorious gift for you all these years? He has been waiting for you to come back.” “Come back? What do you mean?”

The Wise Woman spent the next hour telling Eva about her true family, and about the day she left the castle. “Eva, you were deceived, and you chose to leave. When you left the castle, you left all of it – even the memory of being here. A mysterious man came to the village and was telling people that they didn’t have to live in a place where a king ruled them, that they could rule themselves and do whatever they wanted. You believed him. You didn’t want the king telling you what to do or not to do and thought you could do better on your own. Once you left the castle walls, you forgot all about who you really are. All of the people who live outside the castle walls are just like you – they were loved by the King, but they chose to leave Him.”

Eva was silent for a long time. “…so all of the peasants I lived with…” “They are royalty, too. What is it like out there, with everyone trying to rule themselves and rebelling against the King?” Eva thought for a long time. “Well, some are like me – we just go through every day doing what everyone else does. It’s easier that way – we don’t have to work hard at anything. But, I get tired of living in my dirty shack with so little to eat. I wish that I had books to read, music to play, things to learn – I often feel like I’m not really living. Other people are like the town thieves. They push and bully to get their way and the things they want or need, they steal and hurt people. No one likes them, but I have to admit that sometimes I admire them for doing something, even if it’s not good. At least they aren’t just sitting in a dirty shack wishing they had something to eat like the rest of us.”

The Wise Woman listened quietly, and Eva was surprised to see that now it was her companion who had tears running down her cheeks. “Eva, you were not born for such a life. There is so much in the kingdom for you to learn and enjoy and do! You could make our kingdom a better place by working hard with the King! You could help people. Not only that, but you would wake up in the morning with more to learn, good things to do, and you could think for yourself! That is why the King has sent you this beautiful tiara. To remind you of who you are. He is inviting you to come back to the castle, and start ruling the kingdom with Him. Please come back… He loves you so much.”

Eva nodded excitedly, and then wrinkled her forehead in thought. “If I may ask – why is He inviting me, and not the others in the village?” A fresh batch of tears fell from the Wise Woman’s eyes. “Dear one, they were invited, just as you were. I have spoken to all of them, right in this very spot. Some have returned to the castle and live there today. But those you knew in the village chose to return.” Eva was shocked. “They turned this down? Why would they do that?” “They still did not want to live under the King’s authority. You see, even though He is inviting you to return and rule with Him, He is still King. He still makes the laws and decides what is right and wrong. But look around you – within the castle walls all is clean and orderly and safe. People love one another here. You don’t have to be afraid – the King is watching over you for good, not for evil. He loves us. But some people would rather live on their own and steal and push for their own way, or they don’t want to do any work at all and would rather be hungry in a shack by themselves. All of us have to make the choice, Eva.”

Eva rubbed her grimy fingers over the sparkling diamond tiara. “I know what I want. I want to know the King, if He really loves me like this. I will let Him be King and rule over me -I want to know who I really am and do something good with my life.”

The Wise Woman jumped to her feet, startling Eva. She rushed over and threw her arms around Eva’s neck. ‘”Welcome home, little one. How glad we are to have you.” She pulled a golden cord on the wall which rang a bell, and immediately the messenger who had delivered Eva’s treasure box came to the door. “We have a new resident in the castle. Please bring her clothes, John.” A few minutes later he brought back a beautiful blue satin gown with puffed sleeves and most beautiful princess skirt Eva could imagine. The Wise Woman helped her wash up and braided her hair, placing the diamond tiara on her head. Eva slowly turned to the mirror and tears ran down her cheeks again. “Now I remember,” she said. “Now I remember – Eva the Princess.”

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Then God said,
‘Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
Genesis 1:26-27

His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant!
You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’”
Matthew 25:21

Proverbs 31 graphics from A Pondering Heart