I have currently been reading the Chronicles of Narnia, by C.S. Lewis. These books are amazing! Not only are they easy to read and thoroughly entertaining, they also contain many gospel principles and lessons. It is fun to read a piece of fiction and find religious symbolism.
In the fourth book Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy have been recalled to Narnia to help Prince Caspian defeat his uncle and be victorious in reviving "Old Narnia". The only problem is that the children have been away from Narnia for so long, and the lay of the land has changed so much, that they can't find Prince Caspian to help him. They are lost. They have two options: to go up or to go down. Lucy, the youngest and purest of the children, sees Aslan. In her brief glimpse of the lion, Aslan indicates to Lucy that they must go up. The others do not believe what Lucy saw and decide to go down. The path is very rocky and trecherous and everything goes wrong and they must go back to where they began. While resting for the night, Lucy hears someone calling her name. She wakes to find Aslan telling her that she must get the others to follow her. He will lead her and show her where to go, but at the beginning, no one else will be able to see him. Lucy wakes everyone and they grumble and moan and make a fuss about following little Lucy, and do so grudgingly. As they travel through the night and down a ravine and find a smooth path and are swiftly lead to their destination, they stop their mumblings and murmurings, and one by one they all notice that it is not Lucy who is guiding them, it is Aslan guiding Lucy.
In the fourth book Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy have been recalled to Narnia to help Prince Caspian defeat his uncle and be victorious in reviving "Old Narnia". The only problem is that the children have been away from Narnia for so long, and the lay of the land has changed so much, that they can't find Prince Caspian to help him. They are lost. They have two options: to go up or to go down. Lucy, the youngest and purest of the children, sees Aslan. In her brief glimpse of the lion, Aslan indicates to Lucy that they must go up. The others do not believe what Lucy saw and decide to go down. The path is very rocky and trecherous and everything goes wrong and they must go back to where they began. While resting for the night, Lucy hears someone calling her name. She wakes to find Aslan telling her that she must get the others to follow her. He will lead her and show her where to go, but at the beginning, no one else will be able to see him. Lucy wakes everyone and they grumble and moan and make a fuss about following little Lucy, and do so grudgingly. As they travel through the night and down a ravine and find a smooth path and are swiftly lead to their destination, they stop their mumblings and murmurings, and one by one they all notice that it is not Lucy who is guiding them, it is Aslan guiding Lucy.
The application? Take Aslan to symbolize the Savior Jesus Christ and the children to symbolize you and me.
Sometimes we don't understand all that the Lord requires of us. We don't see a reason or a purpose to doing the things that we need to do. We don't have the eternal perspective, we don't see our Savior, and our eyes and spirits are blinded. This is where faith comes in. As we follow the Savior and his teachings, walking the paths that he himself trod, we will find that road is smooth and easy. We will be able to walk forward and eventually reach our goal. And while we might not see at first, as we soften our hearts, are willing do as the Lord commands, and become pure and child-like, we will begin to see Him and His hand guiding us along the path. Christ will lead us; all we have to do is believe and have the faith to follow wherever he leads.
Sometimes we don't understand all that the Lord requires of us. We don't see a reason or a purpose to doing the things that we need to do. We don't have the eternal perspective, we don't see our Savior, and our eyes and spirits are blinded. This is where faith comes in. As we follow the Savior and his teachings, walking the paths that he himself trod, we will find that road is smooth and easy. We will be able to walk forward and eventually reach our goal. And while we might not see at first, as we soften our hearts, are willing do as the Lord commands, and become pure and child-like, we will begin to see Him and His hand guiding us along the path. Christ will lead us; all we have to do is believe and have the faith to follow wherever he leads.
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