Dinner With C.S. Lewis

"If you could have a conversation over dinner with any one person, dead or alive, with the exception of Jesus, who would it be and why"?

C.S. Lewis. He was a brilliant writer, and as a writer myself, I love Lewis' intellectual and scholarly slant. I love his use of logic and reason to put spiritual matters into a form that logical people cannot help but understand. And because my husband also puts C.S. Lewis at the top of his list of favorite authors/people, we could enjoy the meal and conversation together! (Probably Ribs and Cheesecake.)

Lewis used his writing to direct people 'further up and further in'. His logic carries us to a certain point, then leaves us to ponder and continue upward on our own. I love how he uses sources other than scripture to back up his arguments. He shows that there are little gleams of truth elsewhere, that can be used to strengthen our own faith.

As a writer, I aspire -- like C.S. Lewis -- to get people to look at everyday circumstances and be inspired to think more about their relationship with and position before God.

I want to be the kind of writer who makes people feel like they're banging their head against a brick wall while reading. . . and then have it all suddenly make perfect sense later. And I would of course become become skilled at this sitting under the discipline of C.S. Lewis for the evening over dinner. (Yea, right!) A girl can dream.

-Esthermay

9:32 AM | 4 comments | Read More

Bossy Women & The Pen...

Years ago, I had a friend who was a pastor’s wife. I remember her telling me that the thing she hated the most about being a pastor’s wife was how powerful and bossy women in the church would command her husband around and she felt powerless to do anything about it without looking like a *#&@!. (Yes, that’s what she said.) I thought I understood her at the time.

Fast-forward a decade (or two!). I think I finally get it! I haven’t personally experience the thing with bossy women, but I do see my Mark pulled and drawn in many different directions and toward many different people and ministries within the church. I do have a tendency to be a bit protective and perhaps annoyed that I am no longer the only woman of influence in his life besides his mother. God will deal with me on this.

Ministry wives really do need to control both their emotions and their tongues, and in my case -- the pen. A writer at heart, my journals and computer screen have always been somewhat surreptitious spots to reflect, to process and to pray. Up till now, I wrote without rules. As a pastor’s wife, it may be necessary to implement rules. Good grief, someone from the church may actually read my words!! I could be phony and compose sweet harmonious snippets on the splendor of life as a pastor’s wife. (Right!) I won’t be doing that.

My words – as they have always been - are a means to repent, grow and experience God’s presence and grace. Hopefully, reading it will allot the reader a sense of God’s faithfulness and deliverance as prayers are answered and situations are changed over time. More than anything, I write as a way to quiet my heart and become more like Christ. Which – for those who know me well – will be my greatest challenge in ministry. Next on the list will be keeping the pen still concerning all the bossy women.

4:10 PM | 1 comments | Read More