The Ignorant Mr. Anderson

In the last two days I picked up a copy of C.S. Lewis' 'Surprised by Joy'. I had to make one of those cards to put in the back of the book, so that the church would know it was out (it hadn't quite made it to the shelf yet). In any case the book is mind blowing because it is pure Lewis. The entire book is filled with references to books he has read (many classics), and also includes perhaps over 50 inserts of latin/greek/german/french phrases (most of which I did not comprehend). He is constantly saying things like: "This experience was akin to when Euripedes did this with (excuse my memory) So-and-so." And that was one of the really beneficial things about this book. It explained to me quite clearly that I have no right to boast about the books I have read, or the people I know of. C.S. was merely explaining facts about his childhood. I treat some of these names like trophies, even though I have never read them. To have even heard of Homer is nothing compared to someone who translates from the original. So this is good. Secondly, it re-emphasized the fact that spending my time wisely, and fruitfully is something I need to dedicate more energy to. From now on its no longer, "yeah I read Owen, he's pretty good" (having lightninged through Mortification of Sin [which, by the way, means I was probably thinking about something else and skimming/skipping humongous chunks]), but "I need to re-read this because I don't have anywhere near a good grasp on such-an-such an idea".

Be careful what you read folks.

In other news, I wrote a poem. For some reason every time I read Lewis I receive inspiration. I'll post it some other time.

The Night Can Be So Long

I've been listing to Andrew Peterson lately, having received a very timely CD by the mysterious Aunt Deb. I say mysterious because God has gifted her with a very timely ministry to a younger generation, which often involves life-changing directions. Beware of Aunt Deb! In any case, Listenting to Andrew Peterson's Far Country has been refreshing. Sometimes I sit down and just laugh, because he blends earthy metaphors with kingdom glory. In a day and age when exploring Christian music is akin to throwing your CDs at Calvin and Hobbes' duplicator, it is good to hear truth contexted well. The following song is perhaps an echo of the Boltinator's thoughts of late.

All Shall Be Well
from "The Far Country" Words and music by Andrew Peterson

(Matthew 16:18, Matthew 5:16, Luke 15:20-24, Luke 15:4, Isaiah 40:8, Hebrews 12:1)

We touched down on the sound
At the top of the world
In the land of the midnight sun
Where the frozen river melts away
And breaks into a run
Into the sea, into the mighty waves
That waited just to see it
From a long way off that river thawed
And the tide ran out to meet it
“Welcome home, unfrozen river, welcome home”

‘Cause all shall be well, all shall be well
Break the chains of the gates of Hell
Still all manner of things will be well

See the quiet hearts of the children of
The children of this land
They have stayed alive in the day-long night
By the fires that warm their hands
There is a wilderness inside them
It is dark and thick and deep
And beside the fire at the heart of that wood
Is a precious missing sheep
So go on in, hold your torch, let it shine

‘Cause all shall be well, all shall be well
Break the chains of the gates of Hell
Still all manner of things will be well
All shall be well, all shall be well
The Word of God will never fail
And all manner of things will be well

There’s a light in the darkness
There’s an end to the night

I saw the sun go down on a frozen ocean
As the man in the moon was rising
And he rode the night all full and bright
With his face at the far horizon
And the night can be so long, so long You think you’ll never get up again
But listen now, it’s a mighty cloud of Witnesses around you—they say
“Hold on, just hold on Hold on to the end
And all shall be well”

©Andrew Peterson


Well.... That's it for now, but I think I may blog a little more regularily. I'll tell you soon about the happenings in Kitchener. For now, just hold on, because all shall be well.