It has been fifty-years since the passing of C.S. Lewis, as well as JFK and Aldous Huxley. It’s also been one-hundred twenty years since Lewis was born.

C.S. Lewis has been the most influential Christian writer in my spiritual journey. He has shaped my spirituality more than any other writer I know. I do not agree with all he says (when do we ever find such a person anyway?) — but he is absolutely a kindred soul. I also love his tales of pulling pranks on his dear hapless friends.

To commemorate, here are some of my favorite Lewis quotes.

…if you have faith the size of a mustard seed… Matthew 17:4-21  Seriously, faith the size of a mustard seed, who has that kind of faith? It took me some time but I realized it’s not about size at all! It’s about the character of the seed. Pliny the Elder, who lived between 23 and 79 C.E., wrote in his encyclopedia “Natural History”: With its pungent taste and fiery effect, mustard is extremely beneficial for the health. It grows entirely wild, … when it has once been sown, it is scarcely possible to get the place free of it, as the seed when it falls germinates at once. (Pliny, “Natural History” 19.170-171; Rackham et al. 5.528-529)  John Dominic Crossan (professor emeritus of Depaul University) wrote; “The point is not that the mustard plant starts as a proverbially small seed and grows into a shrub of three or four feet, or even…

32 When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods^[a] who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.”

² Aaron answered them, “Take off the gold earrings that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.”³ So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron.⁴ He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods,^[b] Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.”

⁵ When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and…

I have always been an avid reader–Christian, mysteries, thrillers, science fiction, fantasy, westerns–even love stories.  If I go to the doctor, I bring my current book.  If I go shopping I bring whatever I am reading.  When I exercise, I read.  When I was younger,  my bedroom was located in central area with my sisters’ and parents’ bedroom and the bathroom off of it. I used to keep a flashlight next to my bed so that I could read well into the night.

Why was I under the covers?  So I wouldn’t get caught.  My parents were more concerned about me getting enough sleep.  When I did get caught, what gave me away?  The light.  When you call for your teenage kids to get up in the morning and switch on their light, where do they hide?  Under the covers and away from the light.

There was a time when Adam and Eve…

Jacob Wrestles With God

22 That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two female servants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 23 After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. 24 So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. 25 When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. 26 Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.”

But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”

27 The man asked him, “What is your name?”

“Jacob,” he answered.

28 Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”

29 Jacob said, “Please tell me…

Roses are beautiful creations.  They may vary in size, color, and even in shape.  But they still have those nasty thorns.  No matter how careful I am when I handle them, I always stick myself.  In Paul’s 2^nd letter the Corinthians, he notes, To keep me from being proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me. (2 Cor. 12:7)

You might think that a mighty apostle like Paul who was given so much by God to share with the New Testament church would be able to pray away this thorn.  After all, he had already endured 39 lashes five times, been beaten with rods three times, and been stoned once.  He had come through to the other side of each of these times of suffering.

Paul prayed three times for God to remove the thorn.  With all that he had…

I honestly had no idea where I was going with this blog post when I started it. I had one line in my head, and I went with it.

Take a short trip with me back to middle school when you were standing on the playground with a group of kids from your class. It’s time to play kickball. The big moment has arrived to pick teams. It’s obvious who will get picked first, and the back and forth begins. “I’ll take him.” “I pick her.” And it goes on until there are one or two geeky kids left, standing there looking like hair gel at a bald man convention. Very out of place. Reluctantly, each one is picked up by a team, but everyone knows they won’t be allowed to do much. They were picked because they were the last ones standing there. The only options remaining.

Sometimes I…

Most Christians are taught that sin is a choice.  And we like to think that most of the choices we make are good ones.  Many of us are even willing to admit that some of our choices are less than good–we may even be able to call these bad choice sin.  Few of us take the time to realize that the Bible makes it clear that sin is more than some stupid mistakes.  It’s more than a choice; it’s a power.  That’s why Paul’s letter to the Romans talks about sin ruling.

There is a story told in the One Year Unlocking the Bible Devotional about a large group of people going on a once-in-a-lifetime vacation to one of the Pacific islands.  Many are traveling in economy class, some are traveling business class, and a few are in first class.  Everything is going smoothly en route until suddenly an alarm sounds. …

An old-time house-painter once insisted that paint should be stirred and different cans “boxed” together to bring out the greatest consistency of color and uniformity of coverage.  In much the same way, Paul writes to Timothy to “stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.”

CCADA (Cornerstone Christian Artist Day Apart) just celebrated its 3rd annual art show this past weekend.  Each of us as artists had the opportunity to show how God had stirred within each of us a gift-not always the same gift, yet sometimes something very similar.  There were oil paintings, pencil sketches, colored pencil pieces, photography, natural art, poetry, and music.

Our talents are varied-not surprising since God’s gifts are infinite.  Rather than shaking us to see what might fall out, God has been slowly and steadily stirring us in ways that have helped us to discover…