Sunday, September 21, 2008

i am not skilled to understand

"That walk I now remembered. It seemed to me that I had tasted heaven then. If only such a moment could return! But what I never realized was that it had returned-that the remembering of that walk was itself a new experience of just the same kind. True, it was desire, not possession. But then what I had felt on the walk had also been desire, and only possession in so far as that kind of desire is itself desirable, is the fullest possession we can know on earth; or rather, because the very nature of Joy makes nonsense of our common distinction between having and wanting. There, to have is to want and to want is to have. Thus, the very moment when I longed to be so stabbed again, was itself again such a stabbing."
-Surprised by Joy, C.S. Lewis

As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
John 15:9-11

3 comments:

Courtney Patch said...

Eww, that's good. I should get that book...

rheimbro said...

Leave it to CS Lewis to put into words something we all have felt w/out quite realizing before.

And as for the John quote- all I can really say is that John is definitely one of the things which makes my joy complete!

Thomas said...

everyone just make sure to note how she did nothing but take pictures while I labored away at paddling...just kidding.