Philip Yancey on C.S. Lewis

C.S. Lewis is typically much more present on this blog than he has been lately, something I plan to fix. I'm currently reading, Is Your Lord Large Enough? by Peter Schakel, an atypical Lewis book in that Schakel focuses on the devotional, or lived-out dimension of Lewis's writing and thought, as opposed to his apologetics. The book has been pushing and prodding at the way I read the Bible, think, and pray, and I'll definitely review it.

In the meantime, take a look at Philip Yancey's article on his interactions with C.S. Lewis: Yancey, one of my favorite living authors, gives a lot of credit to Lewis, one of my favorite dead authors:

I wrestled with [Lewis's books] as with a debate opponent and reluctantly felt myself drawn, as Lewis himself had, kicking and screaming all the way into the kingdom of God. Since then Lewis has been a constant companion, a kind of shadow mentor who sits beside me, urging me to improve my writing style, my thinking, and my vision...

Lewis's background of atheism and doubt gave him a lifelong understanding of and compassion for readers who would not accept his words. He had engaged in a gallant tug of war with God, only to find that the God on the other end of the rope was entirely different from what he had imagined. Likewise, I had to overcome an image of God marred by an angry and legalistic church. I fought hard against a cosmic bully only to discover a God of grace and mercy...