The Magic Mirror

This traditional Spanish story caught my eyes when I was browsing through the web.

There was a king in Granada who wished to marry. The barber was the only one who knew His wish. Then the barber spread the news to his other customers and soon the whole kingdom knew about that.

The ladies and gentlemen wondered what kind of conditions that needed to be fulfilled in order to be the queen.

The barber said, "I am the only man permitted to rub the royal face, and what's more, I have a magic mirror. If any woman who is not thoroughly good looks into the mirror, the blemishes on her character will appear as so many spots on its glossy surface."

This only condition to be the queen soon spread to the whole kingdom. However, no one went to the barber to look into that magic mirror. Young ladies were pushing their friends to go to the barber but they themselves didn't dare to try. 

The king once asked the barber and found out that there were no one who went to the barber to have a look into the mirror. He was so disappointed. 

The barber suggested a sheperdess on the other mountainside. She may be brave enough to gaze at the magic mirror but would the king marry such lowly person? 

When the sheperdess came to the court, the barber told her the king's wish and the risk of gazing into the magic mirror. Confidently, this humble lady answered, "Everyone makes mistakes and I am no different. I've made mistakes with my flock but I think they must forgive me because every day they let me take care of them and if they sense danger, they come to me for protection. I love my sheep and do my best for them. Truly I have no ambition to become queen, but I'm not afraid to look into that magic mirror." 

Later, she looked into the mirror. Her face appeared normal. The court ladies surrounded her to look at the mirror and were surprised that the mirror was just an ordinary mirror. No spots were found in the images of their faces. The ladies exclaimed that a trick was being played on them. 

The king said, "If you had been as confident about your characters as this shepherdess, who is now going to be my queen, you would not have refused to look into the mirror. I know now that my bride is truly the best amongst you all." 

(story source: http://www.worldstories.org.uk/stories/story/137-the-magic-mirror/english)

Faith leads you to love. 

The story reminded me of what Pastor Joshua Jung taught about God and life of faith. To be a person who believes in God, what matters the most is the heart of love. It doesn't matter whether who you are, where you were born, how lowly you are, and even what kind of guilt you had. Just like the sheperdess, if you are confident enough to love God, God will choose you. If you are not worried about your own weakness, God will choose you.

God chooses and selects based on love. (Pastor Joshua Jung)