I've been reading some Clive Staples lately. There was an old edition of "mere christianity" kicking around here and the cover had an almost cartoon-ish scene of baby Jesus in a manger with a cow and ass looking at him. I liked it. But it tore off. I like the book better cover-less. I don't know why, it seems naked to me and perhaps that's appropriate as I am thoroughly enjoying the very excellent content inside. it is a good and honest look at christianity.
often in moments of stillness, which in and of themselves do not occur often enough, i recognize discrepancies in my life. the one that comes to mind at this moment is that i can be very hard on people and circumstances and wave some standard of.... i don't know what nor whose standard it is, but it is there... and i wave it around with little to no compassion in me. and then, sometimes, a gentler person is around me and reminds me of an alternative perspective. which is one that i knew of. which is one that i can see the basis of and validity to. which is the perspective that i should, in fact, hold instead of the standard i am waving.
and so, development is needed.
this is not really a thought process particulary triggered by anything from this day. well, maybe there was. or of recent days. Clive Staples is really and truly a fantastic creator of words. He is a master of language if I ever read one. I am thankful that we are privileged to have him as an English author and therefore do not lose any nuance in translation.
i look forward to meeting the man in the heavenlies one day, but here on earth at this time i perceive him to have been one of humble nature. he probably started as one of pride, like the most of us do, and along the way got broken down, learned surrender and was transformed into a man of humility. it comes through strongly in his writing. he easily speaks of how his previously defiant views of christianity were wrong and he addresses the errors that he held. that takes some good humility to do that.
i am sure he wrote this from his own experience and it makes such fantastically simple logic to me that i must share it with you:
we all want progress. but progress means getting nearer to the place where you want to be. and if you have taken a wrong turning, then to go forward does not get you any nearer. if you are on the wrong road, progress means doing an about-turn and walking back to the right road; and in that case the man who turns back soonest is the most progressive man.
