Sep
8
Coffee with Lewis: to love or not to love?
Filed Under Books, C.S. Lewis, Coffee with Lewis | Leave a Comment
From The Four Loves:
To love anything at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly be broken. If you want to amke sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket–safe, dark motionless, airless–it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. The alternative to tragedy, or at least to the risk of tragedy, is damnation. the only place outside Heaven where you can be perfectly safe from all the dangers and perturbations of love is Hell. [121]
Sep
3
Coffee with Lewis: forgiveness
Filed Under Around the Church, C.S. Lewis, Christian Living, Coffee with Lewis | Leave a Comment
Every now and then I’ll start throwing in a choice C.S. Lewis quote. His insight, wit and wisdom still amaze me. Here’s a first sip from The Weight of Glory:
To forgive the incessant provocations of daily life–to keep on forgiving the bossy mother-in-law, the bullying husband, the nagging wife, the selfish daughter, the deceitful son–how can we do it? Only, I think, by remembering where we stand, by meaning our words when we say in our prayers each night, “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” We are offered forgiveness on no other terms. to refuse it is to refuse God’s mercy for ourselves. There is no hint of exceptions and God means what he says.
Jesus says the a forgiven heart is a forgiving heart (Matthew 18:21-35). Is forgiveness really necessary? According to the Lord’s prayer, practicing forgiveness is as much a part of daily life as seeking food. The Bible is the story of a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin… And this God says the forgiveness I receive is to be translated into forgiveness extended to others.
P.S. Folks in and around Kosciusko ought to come to our FPC Fall Lecture Series, which begins, Thu. Sept. 4 at 6:30 pm in our fellowship hall. Rev. Brad Mercer will present six lectures over the next six weeks on “C.S. Lewis: A Man for All Christians.” Let us know if you want more information. See you there.