Cinderella and the Prince of Peace

I love fairy tales....I think I always have.  If I had to pick a favorite, it would be Cinderella.  Even my wedding reception had a touch of a Cinderella theme to it.  There has always been something about Prince Charming and the magic of the ball and that eternal hope of happily ever after.  And let's not forget that apparently a great pair of shoes can change your life!  Now I know, I know, the Grimm version is much more well grim than the Disney version but very few people know that.  Most associate Cinderella with Walt Disney's iconic vision.

However, in 2015, a live-action version of Cinderella came out and I have to secretly admit well not so secretly now that it is by far my favorite.  I can't pin point just one thing, maybe it's the idea of Cinderella's mother teaching her to "have courage and be kind" (something I wish for my own daughters).  Maybe it's the beautiful gown and the ball scene (hello romance).  Maybe it's that the Prince was just an ordinary boy trying to find his place in the world.  Maybe it was finally coming to know the backstory of why the Stepmother was so evil.  It's hard to say but the other night I was watching it with my girls and I realized if nothing else, my favorite part.

There is a small scene, no more than a minute where Cinderella comes down from the attic and is getting ready to confront the Prince and try on the slipper.  As she comes down the stairs you hear the Fairy Godmother's voice say, "Would who she was really be enough? There was no magic to help her this time. This is perhaps the greatest risk any of us will ever take—to be seen as we truly are."  Of all the scenes in the movie, that is the one that struck me the most.

How very true that one of the biggest risks we can take is to let our true selves be seen.  We let others see what we want them to see, we hide behind masks for fear of rejection, for fear of not being good enough.  Very few people, even our families, probably don't really know the true "us." The "us" who is so insecure we can't stand to look in the mirror.  The "us" who cannot forgive someone who hurt us or broke our heart.  The "us" who is bitter over that rejection or lack of acknowledgement.  But no matter what perception we paint or who we try to hide from, we cannot hide from God.

God knows us.  He knew who we were before we were ever a thought.  Psalm 139: 13 says "for you created my inmost being: you knit me together in my mother's womb."  Luke 12:7 says, "indeed the very hairs on your head are all numbered."  You cannot hide your true self from the God who created you and who knows the number of hairs on your head.  He sees us for who we truly are and yet loves us anyway - all our faults, all our shortcomings, all our sins.

SO, the next time you begin to wonder if who you really are is enough - remember to God it is.