C S Lewis

[fieldgrade]

Sometime in the spring (Trinity Sunday was May 22 that year, 1929) Lewis came to believe in God, though not yet in Christ:​

You must picture me alone in that room in Magdalen, night after night, feeling, whenever my mind lifted even for a second from my work, the steady, unrelenting approach of Him of whom I so earnestly desired not to meet. That which I greatly feared had at last come upon me. In the Trinity Term of 1929 I gave in, and admitted that God was God, and knelt and prayed: perhaps, that night, the most dejected and reluctant convert in all England. I did not then see what is now the most shining and obvious thing; the Divine humility which will accept a convert even on such terms. The Prodigal Son at least walked home on his own feet. But who can duly adore that Love which will open the high gates to a prodigal who is brought in kicking, struggling, resentful, and darting his eyes in every direction for a chance of escape? The words compelle intrare, compel them to come in, have been so abused by wicked men that we shudder at them; but, properly understood, they plumb the depth of the Divine mercy. The hardness of God is kinder than the softness of men, and His compulsion is our liberation. (Surprised by Joy, Chapter 14)
From The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Volume I
Compiled in Yours, Jack
The Collected Letters of C. S. Lewis, Volume I: Family Letters 1905-1931. Copyright © 2004 by C. S. Lewis Pte. Ltd. All rights reserved. Used with permission of HarperCollins Publishers. Yours, Jack: Spiritual Direction from C. S. Lewis. Copyright © 2008 by C. S. Lewis Pte. Ltd. All rights reserved. Used with permission of HarperCollins Publishers.

 

[MacEntyre]

The hardness of God is kinder than the softness of men...

This realization is what is missing when people ask, how can there be a God who lets all these bad things happen?

 

[Goofyfoot2001]

I do not believe that God meddles in the affairs of men. I each day he invites you to follow his will; you have the choice each day to do so or not.

 

[MacEntyre]

I do not believe that God meddles in the affairs of men.

...He jus' creates a ton of incredible coincidences, every day!

 

[fieldgrade]

I do not believe that God meddles in the affairs of men. I each day he invites you to follow his will; you have the choice each day to do so or not.

I think he cares a great deal about us, but he DID give us a brain AND a will.
We can follow, or not.

On the other hand, I have seen some pretty powerful things that might otherwise be interpreted as “meddling”.
Like C S Lewis’ conversion.

For me, it’s somewhat of a conundrum.

 

[Windini]

For me, it’s somewhat of a conundrum.

Uncertainty is the cornerstone of Free Will, IMO. If we knew, then there'd be nothing to decide. We have been given both reason and emotion; these are tools that [could/should] compliment and balance each other in our decision making. But ultimately, we choose to act based on our faith - either in Divine Presence, or in our own power.