"I will utterly sweep away everything
from the face of the earth, declares the LORD.
I will sweep away man and beast;
I will sweep away the birds of the heavens
and the fish of the sea,
and the rubble with the wicked.
I will cut off mankind
from the face of the earth," declares the LORD.
--Zephaniah 1:2-3
The first words to come out of God's mouth to Zephaniah could hardly have been more shocking and frightening. This isn't a statement of "I can" destroy everything. This is a promise--"I will utterly sweep away everything from the face of the earth."
God got my attention here. I started reading Zephaniah just because it is one of the few books of the Bible that I can never remember reading. But once I got through the first couple of verses, I realized that I couldn't just read this one through. God was very intentional about making this an attention-getting and alarming introduction. Besides that, He always means what He says.
So I wanted to look into what God was refering to when he mentioned "the wicked." We get two contrasting answers here in the first chapter.
Religious Hypocrisy
"I will cut off from this place the remnant of Baal
and the name of the idolatrous priests along with the priests,
those who bow down on the roofs
to the host of the heavens
those who bow down and swear to the LORD
and yet swear by Milcom,
those who have turned back from following the LORD,
who do not seek the LORD or inquire of Him."
--Zephaniah 1:4-5
The first kind of wickedness that is mentioned is religious wickedness.
Have you ever been guilty of "worshiping" God and something else at the same time? Sometimes I feel like my heart is in an almost constant state of dividedness. God hates this. Some people may be fooled when you are friendly to their face and malicious behind their back. But God doesn't have a back to go behind. He is incapable of being shocked when His people cheat on Him with idols. He sees, and His anger burns.
What else does God hate about religious people? When they stop seeking Him. Well that sure doesn't sound like us! Oh wait...how often do we make decisions without any reference to God's will? How often do we willfully choose to do something that we know He doesn't approve of? More than daily, at very least. God is angry when we do not seek Him or inquire of Him.
God wants us to take religious sins seriously. But there are other kinds of wickedness mentioned in this chapter...and the joy of forgiveness later on.
Part 2 coming soon: The Day of the LORD: Worldly Complacency
Monday, September 5, 2011
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
The Day of the LORD
"I will utterly sweep away everything
from the face of the earth," declares the LORD."
"Be silent before the Lord GOD!
For the day of the LORD is near;
the LORD has prepared a sacrifice
and consecrated His guests."
"The great day of the LORD is near,
near and hastening fast;
the sound of the day of the LORD is bitter;
the mighty man cries aloud there."
"Neither their silver nor their gold
shall be able to deliver them
on the day of the wrath of the LORD.
In the fire of His jealousy,
all the earth shall be consumed;
for a full and sudden end
He will make of all the inhabitants of the earth."
--Zephaniah 1: 2, 7, 14, 18
from the face of the earth," declares the LORD."
"Be silent before the Lord GOD!
For the day of the LORD is near;
the LORD has prepared a sacrifice
and consecrated His guests."
"The great day of the LORD is near,
near and hastening fast;
the sound of the day of the LORD is bitter;
the mighty man cries aloud there."
"Neither their silver nor their gold
shall be able to deliver them
on the day of the wrath of the LORD.
In the fire of His jealousy,
all the earth shall be consumed;
for a full and sudden end
He will make of all the inhabitants of the earth."
--Zephaniah 1: 2, 7, 14, 18
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Lamp in a Dark Room
No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a jar or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light. For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light. Take care then how you hear, for to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he thinks he has will be taken away.
--Luke 8:16-18
Do you go to a good, Bible teaching church like I do? These verses hit people like us kind of hard. Week in and week out, I am blessed with the privilege of sitting under God's word taught rightly. Not only do I hear from His truth in Sunday morning sermons, but I have Sunday school and on top of that one to three weekly Bible studies where I am challenged by more mature believers.
If anyone in the world has been given much from the store of God's treasures, it is me.
Take care then, Carly, how you hear!
Am I a light shining brightly, passing on the deep truths I take in to other people? Or am I merely concerned with my own life? Do I internalize everything to the point that every study group I go to is just a chance for me to be fed? Am I a sponge that never squeezes out the wealth of God's blessing to other needy people?
Don't be this way! Be careful how you hear! As you weekly enjoy God's word being fed to you, don't stop there. Take it in and be encouraged. But realize that God doesn't teach you just for you. God wants His truth to spread to more people, like the lamp held high in the middle of a previously dark room.
Some ways to avoid being the jar that hides the light:
-If you have something to share in Bible study that you know would encourage somebody else, don't let shyness or nervousness keep you silent! God wants other people to see His light through you.
-When you are with people who don't know Jesus, don't keep the Light of the world all to yourself! Speak up. God could change a life through you.
-When God blesses you with rich fellowship with Him, don't be the only one to benefit. Tell your friends awesome things about God that He has shown you--so that they can be encouraged and so that God will be lifted higher in their eyes.
And here is the best part. Unlike money or mints that vanish away when people mooch off you, God's truth actually multiplies when it is shared. Telling someone God's truth will solidify it in your own heart. There is a great irony in that teaching can be the best way to learn something yourself.
The more that you tell, the more that you have! And the more that you have, this verse says, all the more will be given to you. So shine the light of God's truth to everyone you know.
--Luke 8:16-18
Do you go to a good, Bible teaching church like I do? These verses hit people like us kind of hard. Week in and week out, I am blessed with the privilege of sitting under God's word taught rightly. Not only do I hear from His truth in Sunday morning sermons, but I have Sunday school and on top of that one to three weekly Bible studies where I am challenged by more mature believers.
If anyone in the world has been given much from the store of God's treasures, it is me.
Take care then, Carly, how you hear!
Am I a light shining brightly, passing on the deep truths I take in to other people? Or am I merely concerned with my own life? Do I internalize everything to the point that every study group I go to is just a chance for me to be fed? Am I a sponge that never squeezes out the wealth of God's blessing to other needy people?
Don't be this way! Be careful how you hear! As you weekly enjoy God's word being fed to you, don't stop there. Take it in and be encouraged. But realize that God doesn't teach you just for you. God wants His truth to spread to more people, like the lamp held high in the middle of a previously dark room.
Some ways to avoid being the jar that hides the light:
-If you have something to share in Bible study that you know would encourage somebody else, don't let shyness or nervousness keep you silent! God wants other people to see His light through you.
-When you are with people who don't know Jesus, don't keep the Light of the world all to yourself! Speak up. God could change a life through you.
-When God blesses you with rich fellowship with Him, don't be the only one to benefit. Tell your friends awesome things about God that He has shown you--so that they can be encouraged and so that God will be lifted higher in their eyes.
And here is the best part. Unlike money or mints that vanish away when people mooch off you, God's truth actually multiplies when it is shared. Telling someone God's truth will solidify it in your own heart. There is a great irony in that teaching can be the best way to learn something yourself.
The more that you tell, the more that you have! And the more that you have, this verse says, all the more will be given to you. So shine the light of God's truth to everyone you know.
Friday, June 3, 2011
I Don't Deserve This.
According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith--more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire--may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen Him, you love Him. Though you do not now see Him, you believe in Him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
1 Peter 1:3-9
Just really think about these verses for a minute. I know it is kind of a big chunk of scripture, but if you take the time to think through it, I think you will see with the same thing I was hit with yesterday.
I don't deserve this.
Not the various trials that grieve me for a while. Not the death, sickness, confusion, pain, and hurt that I cross paths with from time to time.
I don't deserve an eternal inheritance so wonderful that my first second of it will outweigh anything bad I've ever experienced. I don't deserve the opportunity to bring glory to my Savior Jesus Christ, who has given me everything and to whom I can offer practically nothing. I don't deserve inexpressible joy. And I most definitely don't deserve salvation.
We don't deserve this. But, praise God, it's all ours in Christ Jesus our Lord.
1 Peter 1:3-9
Just really think about these verses for a minute. I know it is kind of a big chunk of scripture, but if you take the time to think through it, I think you will see with the same thing I was hit with yesterday.
I don't deserve this.
Not the various trials that grieve me for a while. Not the death, sickness, confusion, pain, and hurt that I cross paths with from time to time.
I don't deserve an eternal inheritance so wonderful that my first second of it will outweigh anything bad I've ever experienced. I don't deserve the opportunity to bring glory to my Savior Jesus Christ, who has given me everything and to whom I can offer practically nothing. I don't deserve inexpressible joy. And I most definitely don't deserve salvation.
We don't deserve this. But, praise God, it's all ours in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
What Problems?
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:4-7
How comforting and challenging, convicting and consoling these verses are!
Do you think your problems are big? I do. They seem enormous. Just last night I was thinking about something that worried me quite a bit. Sometimes our worries can keep us awake deep into the night.
Thankfully, God's word doesn't leave much room for that. Look how this passage is laid out:
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say rejoice
Be reasonable
Jesus is coming back
Don't be anxious, but give your worries to God (with thanks)
God will bless you with a peace so great you can't understand it
Sandwiched by the idea of joy in God and the idea of incomprehensible peace are a two more commands: be reasonable, and don't worry. And at the heart of it all is a promise: "the Lord is at hand!"
I think that the bigness of how we see our problems is part of why God chose to frame this passage the way He did. Our anxieties and our unreasonableness (lack of peace with ourselves or others) are not allowed room to be as huge as we think they are. My problems are not the focal point of this picture. They aren't even the frame around the picture. The centerpiece, in all its glory, is the return of Christ. And the frame, which is just as thick as the picture itself, is made up of joy and peace in our Heavenly Father. Our unreasonableness and worry are relegated to a thin little mat between picture and frame--a little "do not" buttressed by some of the most amazing promises in Scripture.
I can't imagine if Christ's return took place during one of my times of worry. My "huge" problems would be swallowed up in the vast weight of my Savior's glory. The peace that passes understanding and the joy that conquers all sadness would become my eternal reality. My "problems" would be revealed for what they are: embarrassingly small. Lord, give me this perspective. Surround my problems with the fortress of your joy and peace. And let Your Son's return be at the center of my mind.
Philippians 4:4-7
How comforting and challenging, convicting and consoling these verses are!
Do you think your problems are big? I do. They seem enormous. Just last night I was thinking about something that worried me quite a bit. Sometimes our worries can keep us awake deep into the night.
Thankfully, God's word doesn't leave much room for that. Look how this passage is laid out:
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say rejoice
Be reasonable
Jesus is coming back
Don't be anxious, but give your worries to God (with thanks)
God will bless you with a peace so great you can't understand it
Sandwiched by the idea of joy in God and the idea of incomprehensible peace are a two more commands: be reasonable, and don't worry. And at the heart of it all is a promise: "the Lord is at hand!"
I think that the bigness of how we see our problems is part of why God chose to frame this passage the way He did. Our anxieties and our unreasonableness (lack of peace with ourselves or others) are not allowed room to be as huge as we think they are. My problems are not the focal point of this picture. They aren't even the frame around the picture. The centerpiece, in all its glory, is the return of Christ. And the frame, which is just as thick as the picture itself, is made up of joy and peace in our Heavenly Father. Our unreasonableness and worry are relegated to a thin little mat between picture and frame--a little "do not" buttressed by some of the most amazing promises in Scripture.
I can't imagine if Christ's return took place during one of my times of worry. My "huge" problems would be swallowed up in the vast weight of my Savior's glory. The peace that passes understanding and the joy that conquers all sadness would become my eternal reality. My "problems" would be revealed for what they are: embarrassingly small. Lord, give me this perspective. Surround my problems with the fortress of your joy and peace. And let Your Son's return be at the center of my mind.
Monday, May 23, 2011
Just Ask
Matthew 7:7-11
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
The Proverbial Serpent
One time not too long ago I was sitting in my bed reading something. One member of my family came in, just to say "hi." A nice thing for a brother to do, right? The problem was, I was pretty thirsty at the time, but just hadn't gotten up to get some water because I was also quite comfortable. So instead of saying, "Hi, nice to see you, how are you doing?" I said, "Hi, can you get me some water?" My brother left without saying anything, so I thought maybe he wouldn't get it for me. But about 5 minutes later, he came back with a glass of ice water. "Thank you so much!" I said, and he just smiled. I took a big sip of the cold water. And then I realized the truth--I had asked for a fish, and been given a snake. What I was drinking wasn't ice water, but ice water plus Taco Bell medium sauce. Apparently my brother isn't my servant--how come nobody told me that in all these years?
You have probably been in this situation before, when you asked for something and were given something else. More likely than not, you have found yourself in this situation not with a person, but with God. Finding that your prayers have not been answered just as you prayed them can be as shocking as that first gulp of Rylie's taco cocktail. I asked God to bless me, and look at this. He didn't come through after all.
These verses from Matthew 7 have challenged me greatly. The more I think about them, the more I become convinced that the way I ask, and the way I expect to be answered, don't line up with God's will. So when I think I've been given a serpent, chances are the problem was with me all along.
A Truly Good Gift
First of all, I need to realize how absolutely certain it is that God will bless me with wonderful gifts. These verses in Matthew, and many others (i.e., Eph. 1:3, Phil. 2, James 1:17, 1 Pet. 1:4, 2 Pet. 1:3) tell us that God wants to and does give us good gifts.
Scripture is clear about what God sees as a good gift. Just look in the Bible for the things that God describes as good or perfect. Here are just a few:
-Fruitfulness (Luke 6:43)
-The news of the Gospel (Luke 3: 18)
-Obedience (Romans 2:10)
-Everything God does in the life of a believer (Romans 8:28)
-Christlikeness (Romans 8:29)
-God's will (Romans 12:2)
God's word also describes plenty of non-spiritual blessings as good; for example: food, wine, money, singleness, and marriage. But there is one good gift that rises far above the rest. Jesus said, "No one is good except God alone (Mark 10:18)." The best gift that God can give anyone is Himself!
I need to have a strong confidence that God will bless me with Himself anytime I ask!
No More Apathy
This begs the question, why don't I ask more?
I don't know if you are like me in this, but when I find myself doing poorly spiritually, I'll often just feel discouraged and leave it at that. I find I'm constantly confessing sin, but with little change. My quiet times are weak. My relationships with others are strained, stressful, or just shallow. I'm not finding joy in my spiritual walk, so I start looking for happiness in entertainment, comfort, and company. I don't find happiness, so I get even more down. And in all my searching for a cure, I neglect the one solution that God has promised will work.
Everything I am missing out on in my spiritual walk is something that God promises to give me, if I'll just ask for it!
As Christians we can and should be 100% confident that God will give us these good gifts when we ask. But it can be so easy to forget that chooses to base much of His giving on the condition of our asking. I think that this is why oftentimes we slip into spiritual dry spots. When we stop asking, we stop receiving. Does God have to wait for our permission or request before He can bless us? Of course not! And He often doesn't. But His word also makes it clear that sometimes it is His will to bless us specially and extraordinarily when we ask for a good gift.
Do you think that if you earnestly ask God to enliven your spiritual walk, show you amazing things about Himself, and give you a closer relationship with Him, He'll say no? There's no chance! God isn't asking you to get godly on your own. He isn't asking you to discover the secret formula for a perfect life. All He wants is for you to ask Him for His help.
Ask earnestly. Ask purposefully. Ask diligently. Ask over and over if you have to. Whatever you do, don't stop asking. Because He promises that He won't fail to give you the good and perfect gift of Himself.
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
The Proverbial Serpent
One time not too long ago I was sitting in my bed reading something. One member of my family came in, just to say "hi." A nice thing for a brother to do, right? The problem was, I was pretty thirsty at the time, but just hadn't gotten up to get some water because I was also quite comfortable. So instead of saying, "Hi, nice to see you, how are you doing?" I said, "Hi, can you get me some water?" My brother left without saying anything, so I thought maybe he wouldn't get it for me. But about 5 minutes later, he came back with a glass of ice water. "Thank you so much!" I said, and he just smiled. I took a big sip of the cold water. And then I realized the truth--I had asked for a fish, and been given a snake. What I was drinking wasn't ice water, but ice water plus Taco Bell medium sauce. Apparently my brother isn't my servant--how come nobody told me that in all these years?
You have probably been in this situation before, when you asked for something and were given something else. More likely than not, you have found yourself in this situation not with a person, but with God. Finding that your prayers have not been answered just as you prayed them can be as shocking as that first gulp of Rylie's taco cocktail. I asked God to bless me, and look at this. He didn't come through after all.
These verses from Matthew 7 have challenged me greatly. The more I think about them, the more I become convinced that the way I ask, and the way I expect to be answered, don't line up with God's will. So when I think I've been given a serpent, chances are the problem was with me all along.
A Truly Good Gift
First of all, I need to realize how absolutely certain it is that God will bless me with wonderful gifts. These verses in Matthew, and many others (i.e., Eph. 1:3, Phil. 2, James 1:17, 1 Pet. 1:4, 2 Pet. 1:3) tell us that God wants to and does give us good gifts.
Scripture is clear about what God sees as a good gift. Just look in the Bible for the things that God describes as good or perfect. Here are just a few:
-Fruitfulness (Luke 6:43)
-The news of the Gospel (Luke 3: 18)
-Obedience (Romans 2:10)
-Everything God does in the life of a believer (Romans 8:28)
-Christlikeness (Romans 8:29)
-God's will (Romans 12:2)
God's word also describes plenty of non-spiritual blessings as good; for example: food, wine, money, singleness, and marriage. But there is one good gift that rises far above the rest. Jesus said, "No one is good except God alone (Mark 10:18)." The best gift that God can give anyone is Himself!
I need to have a strong confidence that God will bless me with Himself anytime I ask!
No More Apathy
This begs the question, why don't I ask more?
I don't know if you are like me in this, but when I find myself doing poorly spiritually, I'll often just feel discouraged and leave it at that. I find I'm constantly confessing sin, but with little change. My quiet times are weak. My relationships with others are strained, stressful, or just shallow. I'm not finding joy in my spiritual walk, so I start looking for happiness in entertainment, comfort, and company. I don't find happiness, so I get even more down. And in all my searching for a cure, I neglect the one solution that God has promised will work.
Everything I am missing out on in my spiritual walk is something that God promises to give me, if I'll just ask for it!
As Christians we can and should be 100% confident that God will give us these good gifts when we ask. But it can be so easy to forget that chooses to base much of His giving on the condition of our asking. I think that this is why oftentimes we slip into spiritual dry spots. When we stop asking, we stop receiving. Does God have to wait for our permission or request before He can bless us? Of course not! And He often doesn't. But His word also makes it clear that sometimes it is His will to bless us specially and extraordinarily when we ask for a good gift.
Do you think that if you earnestly ask God to enliven your spiritual walk, show you amazing things about Himself, and give you a closer relationship with Him, He'll say no? There's no chance! God isn't asking you to get godly on your own. He isn't asking you to discover the secret formula for a perfect life. All He wants is for you to ask Him for His help.
Ask earnestly. Ask purposefully. Ask diligently. Ask over and over if you have to. Whatever you do, don't stop asking. Because He promises that He won't fail to give you the good and perfect gift of Himself.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
C.S. Lewis and Hope
C.S. Lewis is undoubtedly one of the most famous and influential Christian authors of all time. I just finished reading his "Mere Christianity" last month. This book is philosophically brilliant, clear, and persuasive. It also contains several things that many Christians, myself included, don't agree with.
But this blog post isn't to talk about problems with C.S. Lewis. I want to talk about the good influence his work has had on me, and it's important role in my life.
When I was little, the Voyage of the Dawn Treader was one of my favorite books. I read the whole Narnia series lots of times, but something about Voyage fascinated me more than the others. Never mind that for years I thought it was pronounced "Dawn Tree-der" (I was better at reading than speaking, apparently), and I alternated thinking C.S. Lewis was a man or a woman (thanks to those ambiguous initials). But though I wasn't able to understand Lewis' work as well as an adult could, I think I understood it as he intended--in the way only a child could.
I held my breath as Lucy explored mysterious hallways in the magician's house. I felt a dawning sense of horror when a man from the land where dreams come true told its seekers, "Fools! Do you hear what I say? This is where dreams -dreams, do you understand, come to life, come real." I remembered with a shudder "dreams I had had - dreams that made me afraid of going to sleep again."
But there was more than just fear and suspense. What drew me most to his books was the sense of wonder that I felt every time I opened one up. And it wasn't just because the stories took place in some magical world. Fantasy stories are well and good, but there was something else. Every book was shot through with hope from cover to cover.
From the expectant Narnians in the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe waiting for their kings and queens, to the father in The Horse and His Boy waiting for his lost son to come home, to the long awaited end of all days in The Last Battle, the world of Narnia was a world of hope.
Treader, more than any of the others, captured my imagination in anticipation. As the title ship traveled farther and farther east, the sea became sweeter and more beautiful. Aslan's country was near, and I shared the excitement of the characters. When they finally got to the distant shore, the beauty of expectation made my eyes sting. Because even when I was little, I yearned for heaven. I had the desire that everyone who ever lives has felt--the desire for something more, something we don't even know. The ironic thing is, when I first read the book, I didn't realize that "I was made for another world." What I did realize was that heaven was beautiful, and it was infinite. I loved trying to push to the ends of infinity with my mind, and I loved coming up short every time. And I loved reading about the far country in C.S. Lewis' books. Not because I wished I could live in an alternate reality, but because they gave me a small taste of the mysterious, mind-blowing, wonderful beauty of heaven.
As I wrapped up Mere Christianity this week, I again caught a glimpse of this hope. Just as with Treader, the best part was the end. This hope, though, is something both deeper and more understandable for me. Here, Lewis describes the hope of the "new self"--of the coming reality of losing this twisted, sin-marred personality and embracing my new, perfect identity in Christ.
I am indebted to C.S. Lewis for showing me a little glimpse of the future I look forward to. From the time I was little, his writing has whetted my appetite for God and for the world to come.
But this blog post isn't to talk about problems with C.S. Lewis. I want to talk about the good influence his work has had on me, and it's important role in my life.
When I was little, the Voyage of the Dawn Treader was one of my favorite books. I read the whole Narnia series lots of times, but something about Voyage fascinated me more than the others. Never mind that for years I thought it was pronounced "Dawn Tree-der" (I was better at reading than speaking, apparently), and I alternated thinking C.S. Lewis was a man or a woman (thanks to those ambiguous initials). But though I wasn't able to understand Lewis' work as well as an adult could, I think I understood it as he intended--in the way only a child could.
I held my breath as Lucy explored mysterious hallways in the magician's house. I felt a dawning sense of horror when a man from the land where dreams come true told its seekers, "Fools! Do you hear what I say? This is where dreams -dreams, do you understand, come to life, come real." I remembered with a shudder "dreams I had had - dreams that made me afraid of going to sleep again."
But there was more than just fear and suspense. What drew me most to his books was the sense of wonder that I felt every time I opened one up. And it wasn't just because the stories took place in some magical world. Fantasy stories are well and good, but there was something else. Every book was shot through with hope from cover to cover.
From the expectant Narnians in the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe waiting for their kings and queens, to the father in The Horse and His Boy waiting for his lost son to come home, to the long awaited end of all days in The Last Battle, the world of Narnia was a world of hope.
Treader, more than any of the others, captured my imagination in anticipation. As the title ship traveled farther and farther east, the sea became sweeter and more beautiful. Aslan's country was near, and I shared the excitement of the characters. When they finally got to the distant shore, the beauty of expectation made my eyes sting. Because even when I was little, I yearned for heaven. I had the desire that everyone who ever lives has felt--the desire for something more, something we don't even know. The ironic thing is, when I first read the book, I didn't realize that "I was made for another world." What I did realize was that heaven was beautiful, and it was infinite. I loved trying to push to the ends of infinity with my mind, and I loved coming up short every time. And I loved reading about the far country in C.S. Lewis' books. Not because I wished I could live in an alternate reality, but because they gave me a small taste of the mysterious, mind-blowing, wonderful beauty of heaven.
As I wrapped up Mere Christianity this week, I again caught a glimpse of this hope. Just as with Treader, the best part was the end. This hope, though, is something both deeper and more understandable for me. Here, Lewis describes the hope of the "new self"--of the coming reality of losing this twisted, sin-marred personality and embracing my new, perfect identity in Christ.
I am indebted to C.S. Lewis for showing me a little glimpse of the future I look forward to. From the time I was little, his writing has whetted my appetite for God and for the world to come.
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