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June 15, 2016

A Dangerous World


I just finished reading The Screwtape Letters, and so lately I've been thinking a lot about the struggle of the human will between good and evil. As Screwtape writes in one of his letters, God has created a truly "dangerous world" - a world in which "moral issues really come to the point.”

Screwtape is right, for God did make the world dangerous when he gave us free will. Free will allows us to fully appreciate God's goodness through a choice, but we can also make the choice to go in the opposite direction and walk away from Him. Each of us has been given the ability to make decisions that will affect our souls for eternity - and this can be a terrifying thing to ponder. But isn't it this very danger that makes goodness itself beautiful? For how can we fully appreciate goodness without the existence of evil? How can we see beauty without there being ugliness? How can we recognize light without darkness? There are endless examples of this intriguing truth. Our ability to discern and make choices may be dangerous, but it is this very danger that makes the reality of life all the more beautiful.

3 comments:

  1. Mmm. I love your thoughts here. Thanks for sharing. <3

    PS I think I just discovered what book to read next...it's always a good time to read a little more CS Lewis!

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    1. Thank you so much! Yes, I love CS Lewis... there is a special section on my bookshelf dedicated just to him.

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  2. "How can we see beauty without there being ugliness? How can we recognize light without darkness?" Truth! <3

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