Remember when you learned about tender mercies back in primary? They are the small things that God has placed in our lives so that we can be blessed. Sometimes we don't recognize them until after they happen, but sometimes we're fortunate enough to notice the tender mercies as we get to experience them. For me this C.S. Lewis class has been a tender mercy in my life. I feel like I have been learning a ton about the Gospel, even though Lewis is not a Mormon writer. It's amazing the things you learn about yourself as you read into the insights of others.
Mere Christianity is an amazing book. I have yet to read something by C.S. Lewis that I haven't absolutely fallen in love with. These first two books especially felt like a collection of addresses from the General Authorities. I think I love reading them so much because they have a very similar feel to that of the prophet. The first book of Mere Christianity explains that there is a moral standard in this world that has been given to us from a Supreme Being and we are supposed to live up to it, but we are failing miserably. It isn't until Book 2 that Lewis suggests the existence of God and Christ.
One idea that I really liked was Lewis' exclamation that now is the time to choose what side we are on. Lewis puts a strong emphasis on the now. Now is when we must decide who we are going to be, now is when we decide who we are going to follow. I really liked this idea, because I often get caught up in the future. I spend hours upon hours thinking about how great life will be later, or how I will act later. I'm going to be a better person in the future, I'll read my scriptures daily . . . starting tomorrow. Life is busy and too often I get caught up in what I should be doing or what I will be doing rather than what I am doing. Lewis gave a strong reminder that life is to be lived now. The choices we make in the now are the choices that will be followed in the future. And the most important choice we will make is wether we should follow God or not.
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