*My spiritual birthday was last week, and I became a teenager. And with it, this story (that I read years ago) was the first thing that came to mind.
In his book about the Virgin Mary's song, Luther tells of a vision. Three virgins knelt before an altar. During the service a beautiful young man appeared and hugged the first girl and kissed her. He did not kiss the second, but smiled at her with great friendliness. As for the third, he hit her and pulled her hair. With this the young man disappeared.
Later, the vision was explained. The first virgin symbolizes the selfish, unregenerate souls. God must do much good to them. He must fulfill their will toward them, not His own. They cannot live without receiving many blessings from God.
The second virgin represents those who have started to serve God but still need, at least from time to time, a friendly gesture from Him. They cannot simply love Him without expecting anything in return. They cannot simply love Him, whatever He does and however He behaves.
The third virgin, the Cinderella, represents the saintly soul who loves God without any ulterior motive. She simply loves. She is happy if He does good to others. Mary would have sung the same beautiful praises if she had been told that another girl, yes, one who despised her, had been chosen by God to be the mother of the Lord. Such do not need the caresses of the Lord. They are happy to bear their cross for Him and pass through a dark night of the soul. If He wishes to abandon them while they undergo suffering, they do not complain. Everything is right only if it is His good pleasure. For these souls God multiplies the chastising. "Whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives" (Hebrews 12:6).
~taken from Alone with God by Richard Wurmbrand
