Once upon a time in a land not so far away, there lived four beautiful princesses. They lived in a kingdom that was held captive and ruled by the evil Prince Fear.

The King of their land was a mighty man who loved and cared for His people. He was working on a plan to free them from this enemy who had held them for too long.

One day the King decided to visit the home of the four princesses. They were sisters each created with a purpose, and they were about to find out what those purposes were.

The oldest princess was Grace. She had beautiful curly brown hair and eyes that spoke of kindness. Her sister Faith was a spunky, adventurous girl, with short hair flopping on her head. She believed that anything was possible.

The third princess was Joy, and she would giggle and dance as she went about her day. She was always contagiously passing on her strength and her ability to enjoy anything she was doing.

The youngest princess was Hope. She was sweet and had a forgetful mind when it came to things that happened yesterday or even an hour ago. She would look toward the future with the greatest of anticipation. She had an excitement to her about what tomorrow might bring…

Little did these princesses know that tomorrow would bring something greater than they could ever imagine!

When the King arrived at the home of the four princesses, he said, “Hello, my four princesses!”

“Good day,” replied the girls.

“I have come with a very important plan for each of you,” He replied with excitement.

Hope stepped forward, her face beaming with anticipation, anxious to hear all He had to say.

“I gave you each a gift when you were born and now is the time for you to use it to help set our village free,” the King said with a proud smile.

The princesses spent the day talking with the King and asking questions about His plan to free their village. By evening they were ready to put to use the special gifts the King had given them so long ago.

The next day the princesses went into the village to use their special gifts.

Grace was the first to enter the town. The village people were all hurrying around and working frantically. They looked tired and worn out, and no one smiled or said “hello.” They all lived in fear of what might happen to them if they were to stop a moment and enjoy any part of their day.

Prince Fear had told them about all the horrible things that would happen to those who stop for a moment to rest. Of course, he had been lying to them, but they believed his lies.

Day after day they worked and worked with no time to spend with their families or friends. They were always tired and filled with great sadness. They had forgotten the King and His promises to never leave them nor give up on them.

Grace saw the local milkman. She walked up to him and convinced him to stop for one moment on his route and listen to her. “Mr. Milkman, why are you so frantic and frazzled?” she asked.

“I have got to hurry! I’ve got to get this milk delivered to everyone in this town before sundown. Remember what happened when I did not have time to bring you your milk?” he asked her.

“Mr. Milkman, it wasn’t that big of a deal. You apologized and I forgave you!” Grace replied kindly.

Mr. Milkman could not believe his ears. She forgave him. Could this be? She was not angry with him nor did she hate him, but instead she forgave him?

Grace continued, “Mr. Milkman, you do the best you can do for our town, and when you mess up and apologize, we forgive you. None of us is perfect. You have a gift for delivering milk, and I appreciate you.”

Mr. Milkman felt something he had not experienced in a long time. He felt a little lighter and a smile started to appear on his face. He remembered why he had become a milkman.

“Thank You, Grace! Knowing you forgave me even when I didn’t deserve it makes me feel all warm inside,” Mr. Milkman smiled. He went on with his route with a smile on his face and a bounce in his step. As he walked on, he passed the baker.

The baker had her hair all knotted and covered in flour. Faith skipped up to Mrs. Baker and gave her a wink! Mrs. Baker just stared at Faith not understanding why she was so bubbly.

Faith asked Mrs. Baker, “Why are you so grumpy and down?”

Mrs. Baker replied, “I have 200 loaves of bread to get done before noon, and I don’t think I’ll have enough time!”

Faith smiled at Mrs. Baker, “I believe you can do it, Mrs. Baker. You are a fantastic baker! Remember the time you made 300 loaves all before noon?”

Mrs. Baker had forgotten but Faith kept encouraging her until she too believed she could do it. Relief came over her, and she started to look forward to baking the bread. She smiled and thanked Faith for helping her remember that all things are possible for those who will believe.

Mrs. Baker carried her loaves past the butcher as he was crossing the street. Now it was Joy’s turn to use her gift.

Joy was bopping down the street when she bumped into the butcher heading into his store. “I am sorry,” she giggled.

“What is so funny?” he grumbled.

“I am just feeling happy, that is all,” Joy answered.

“Happy, humph. That is ridiculous! What is there to be happy about?” asked the butcher.

Joy looked him straight in the eye and asked him, “What is there not to be happy about?”

He was too busy to play these games with her. He had a lot of meat to carry into his store and was already feeling so tired he could hardly pick any of it up.

Joy noticed him struggling. She told him to sit down a moment to rest and she would help him.

“Ha! You help me? Be my guest!” he laughed at her knowing that she would not be able to pick up all that meat, especially if he, a grown man, could not do it. He watched her in astonishment as she picked up each stack of meat with a smile on her face and a bounce in her walk.

How could this be? She was a sweet young princess. He was a big muscled man.

When she was done, she gave him a high five and a smile.

“How, how did you do that, Joy?” he stuttered.

She told him how the happiness that bubbled up inside of her gave her strength to do what she needed to do.

Once again she asked him, “Mr. Butcher, what is there not to be happy about? We have a beautiful day, jobs to do, families that love us, and homes to go to. I just feel so grateful. I have to be happy!” Joy smiled.

Could this be? Because she was joyful she had strength to do anything she needed to do? When Mr. Butcher finally realized that what Joy was saying was right, he smiled and felt strength rising inside of him. He felt for the first time in years that today would be a good day.

All the townspeople were noticing the difference in the milkman, the baker, and the butcher. They were curious but fearful of what was going to happen when Prince Fear found out.

They all came together at the town circle to discuss what was happening. As they gathered, Hope came on the scene. She jumped onto the platform and began to speak. As she spoke, she did not bring up the past because she could not remember it. Instead she spoke of all the exciting things that tomorrow would bring. She acted as if she had forgotten why she was even up there at all.

She told the town of the many special plans the King had for tomorrow. She told them how they would all be free to do the things they were called to do. She told them how the King was planning a party and what fun it would be. They would see their family and friends there. They would eat great food and laugh as they talked about their futures in this great kingdom.

As she talked, the townspeople forgot their fear and felt a feeling they hadn’t felt in a long, long time: freedom.

Prince Fear watched from afar and realized he could not scare them anymore. He decided if they were going to ignore him, he would go to another place where he could use his scare tactics and be “appreciated.”

The next day happened just as Hope had said! The King threw a great party, and Grace, Faith, Joy, and Hope were there celebrating with the townspeople. And they celebrated the gifts the King had given each of them.