Actors needed: 6 (2 On stage narrators and 3 Actors with many dialogues; 1 final actor with one dialogue), preferably all 6 or at least 4 girls
Time: 15 minutes
Proposed audience: Church setting
Theme: Understanding how God refines us, purifies us to serve Him
Narrator 1: Bible is just not understandable. I give up!
Narrator 2: Oh no. Why do you say that?
Narrator 1: How much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. (Heb 9:14)
Look at how Paul writes. I cannot get heads or tails of what he is planning to say. Why can't he give analogies? Won't it be easier to understand?
Narrator 2: Oh!! Analogies, you mean like parables? Like in.. Let me see… Hmm.. In Malachi 3, we have some interesting analogy that explains the same point as Paul does. See if you can understand this. But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the LORD.
Narrator 1: Are you kidding me?? You are throwing me from the pan to the burning fire.
Narrator 2: Wow! Now, that is a nice analogy, what you just said.
Narrator 1: Just stop it. Are you gonna help me now or...
Narrator 2: (Interrupts) Sorry, Sorry. I will stop playing. I really want you to understand what is written in the Bible. Let me see how to explain that to you. (Thinks deeply) I've got something!! You love shopping, right? Let me tell you a small story about Jessica and her 3 dresses.
Narrator 1: A parable of the dresses. That sounds interesting. But, do you think everyone would be able to relate to this. Clearly, boys won't be interested in listening about dresses.
Narrator 2: Come on now, do not discourage me. Are we all farmers? Didn’t we understand the parable of the sowers? If you put your heart to it, anyone can understand. Let me put it the way Jesus did. "He who has ears, let him hear".
There was a girl named Jessica. She had three dresses hanging in her closet. They were Pinky, Stretch and Glamour
Pinky and Stretch are standing very close together, and Glamour is standing halfway behind Pinky, so she is only partially seen. Pinky begins to giggle, then stops. Stretch looks quizzically at her for a moment, then faces the audience again. Pinky giggles again and Stretch looks at her. Pinky looks at Stretch's upraised eyebrows, clears her throat, then stops giggling. After a moment, Pinky breaks out in hysterical laughter once again.
Stretch: All right, Pinky, what's so funny?
Pinky: I can't help it, Stretch, Miss Glamour back here is tickling me.
Glamour: (still standing behind Pinky) I'm not doing anything!
Pinky: Yes, you are! I can feel you breathing, and it tickles the threads in my sweater. (laughs again) There you go again!
Stretch: For goodness sake, Glamour, will you move out of Pinky's way before she busts a seam or something?
Pinky: Actually, can we all move? It feels a bit crowded in here this morning.
(All three girls jump so there is some space between them. They should be standing side by side, in a straight line)
Stretch: Aaah, that's much better. What were you doing back there anyway, Glamour?
Glamour: I was hiding.
Pinky: Hiding? Hiding from what?
Glamour: Not from what, from whom.
Stretch: Whom, who?
Glamour: Her whom, that's who!
Stretch: Her whom? (getting annoyed) Glamour, what are you talking about?
Glamour: I'm talking about Miss Jessica Crystilda, that's who!
Pinky: (shocked) Jess? Our owner?
Glamour: The one and only.
Pinky: Why were you hiding from her? Jess is great.
Glamour: I was hiding because I didn't want her to see me.
Stretch: Why not?
Glamour: Because if she saw me, she might choose me, and I didn't feel like going out today.
Stretch: You never feel like going out.
Pinky: I love going out! You get to travel and meet all kinds of new people.
Stretch: Yeah, it's much better than hanging here in this stuffy closet all day.
Glamour: I don't think so. I'd rather hang here where it's safe.
Stretch: Really?
Pinky: Remember, Stretch, she's still new. She hasn't been out there like we have.
Stretch: That's right. You just arrived here last week.
Pinky: Oh, I remember the day I was first brought home. I'd been shipped around from store to store and it felt like I'd been hanging on that sales rack forever! I'd been discounted so many times, I didn't think anyone would ever want me.
Stretch: Then Jess walked in, right?
Pinky: Right. She picked me up and ran her hand over my sleeve. She saw that flaw near my elbow, but she didn't care. She just smiled and looked at me lovingly.
Stretch: Then she bought you.
Pinky: Yep, paid full price for me too. She told the clerk that the sales price didn't reflect my true worth. Then I was wrapped up and brought here, and this has been my home ever since.
Glamour: What about you, Stretch?
Stretch: There wasn't anything special about me. I was just an ordinary t-shirt. I was folded on the shelf waiting, with all the other hopefuls, when Jess found me. She said she could use a good shirt like me. So, here I am.
Narrator 1: Wait a minute. Let me see if I understood this right. Jessica Cristilda represents Jesus Christ.
Narrator 2: Really!! You took this long to understand that?
Narrator 1: Wait till I finish. Pinky, Stretch and Glamour represent mankind. And Specifically, the God's chosen people. It doesn't matter what our past was, the world may look at us and say, you are useless or unworthy, but Jesus paid the full price for us and bought us and gave us a new identity. Am I right?
Narrator 2: Not bad, Not bad at all. Let me continue the story.
Pinky: There's really nothing to be scared of Glamour. Jess always takes good care of us.
Glamour: It's not Jess that I'm afraid of so much. It's the washer and the dryer.
Stretch: Yeah, I know what you mean. I'm not gonna lie to you Glamour, it can be pretty rough sometimes.
Pinky: We were all scared the first time we had to face the washer and dryer.
Glamour: Even you, Stretch?
Stretch: Of course, I was!
Glamour: But you seem so strong.
Stretch: Sure, I do now, but I was scared to death that first time. It was the worst!
Glamour: What happened?
Stretch: Jess took me out to work, and then....and then...
Pinky: Tell her, Stretch.
Stretch: I got dirty!
Glamour: (aghast) No!
Stretch: Yes. I was working in the yard and some dust came flying at me and I couldn't fight it off. Then, I.... I....(pause)
Pinky: Go on Stretch. I know it's difficult.
Stretch: Well, (hesitating) I... I....rubbed against the soil and it got all over me.
Glamour: (gasps) How terrible!
Stretch: I know, I shouldn't have done it. I was so ashamed. I tried to get the dirt off, but I just made it worse. Pretty soon, a small stain turned into a big one, and then I created another one and another one, until I was covered with them. Poor Jess, she had to stop the work she was doing and take me home. Just because of me, her plan and her work got delayed.
Glamour: And that's when you had to go in the washer?
Stretch: Yes.
Glamour: What was it like?
Stretch: You know; it was not as bad as I thought it would be. Of course, it pains to be in that washer, but at the end of it I was clean again.
Glamour: What do you mean by ‘it pains’, I am getting scared.
Stretch: I won’t lie to you by saying it was a pleasant experience. The soil on me kind of clung to me, I had to be crushed and straightened for it to come off. But you see, all that seems nothing compared to the joy of being clean again.
Narrator 2: I hope you still understand what is going on. Stretch fell into sin. She was not strong to resist it the first time. She sinned once, twice, thrice and before she could know it, she was covered by it. Sin clings on to us. We cannot become clean again by our efforts. Only the blood of Jesus could wash us and make us clean.
Narrator 1: I get it now. This is what Paul means in Hebrews when he says, Jesus would purify us and present us without blemish. We cannot call us God's own and remain in sin. We need to be cleansed by the power of His blood. I agree with Stretch, the process could pain, but seriously, it is nothing compared to the joy of being clean again. Let us go back to the story.
Pinky: My experience was also very similar. I was once in a store and there seemed to be something shining next to me. I was so attracted to it, and I turned towards it…and…..
Glamour: I am also attracted to shiny things.
Pinky: Yeah, But this shiny thing turned out to be a fake. As soon as I touched I got stained. It was a horrible experience. I got through it only because of Jessica. She was so caring and compassionate. She understood how I felt. I never wanted to hurt her. She had to wear this dirty me in the streets, till she could get me home. Oh! What a bad name I got for her. But still she saw through me and forgave me. She lovingly put me in the washer and explained to me that it was needed for me to be clean again.
Stretch: You will not believe how good it felt to be clean again. To see Jessica smile was more than enough.
Narrator 2: Hey!! Are you alright? You seem disturbed.
Narrator 1: How often? How often have I delayed God's plan in my life just like Stretch? How often have I brought disgrace to the name of my God just like Pinky? God bought this worthless me and took me as His own. But what did I give Him back in return; Just disgrace and disappointment after disappointment! But He still loves me. Narrator 1, tell me, please tell me what I could do in return for all His love.
Narrator 2: All we could do is, shine forth His light, that men may see our good works and glorify our Father in heaven.
Narrator 1: But how can I shine His light?
Narrator 2: What shines better? An impure gold or a refined gold?
Narrator 1: Of course, a refined gold.
Narrator 2: That’s what we need to be- Refined gold. We should be refined in the Refiner's fire. Listen to the story
Glamour: After listening to you, I am now ready to submit myself to be washed when I get dirty, but why do I have to go through the dreaded iron. I heard it is too hot. Why should I be pressed?
Stretch: You have to understand this Glamour. We don't just belong to someone. We belong to the one and only, Miss Jessica Christilda. We cannot go out wrinkled and crumpled. We need to be free from any shortcomings. The heat from the iron will take off all our wrinkles and make us look our best. That’s the minimum we could do for our Jess.
Pinky: When Jess wears me and go after I am cleaned and pressed, I have heard people tell Jess, "You look pretty, the dress fits you so well, You look lovely". The joy it gives me hearing them praise my Jess is immeasurable.
Glamour: Is Jessica really such a good master?
Pinky: She is the kindest, loving master you can ever have.
Glamour: I think I understand Jessica better now. Thank you both so much.
Pinky: Once you meet her you will start to love and trust her.
Glamour: Do you really think so?
Stretch: Yes, I do. Don’t ever forget that Jessica loves you very much. Don’t you remember how happy she was the day she bought you?
Pinky: Yes, she was almost floating in the air.
Stretch: So the next time the master comes here, there is no need for you to hide. She cares for you just the way you are.
Glamour: But…….
Pinky: Shh.. I think I hear someone coming.
Stretch: I think it is Jessica. You do not need to be scared Glamour, trust us and trust Jessica.
Pinky: Let’s get back in soon.
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