A Grief Observed

     To anyone who has ever suffered a loss: a comfort. To anyone dealing with any stage of grief: a companion. This classic book by C.S. Lewis approaches the loss of a loved one in a way that comforts, listens, hurts, holds, and cries with the reader. In his mind-numbing grief, Lewis chokes out the words to somehow enunciate his agony over the loss of a loved one - the loss of his loved one - even when his emotions rob him of words and the breath to form them.


     In all of his floundering to communicate, what comes across is a beautifully painful account of his journey through grief; the musings of an influential man brought down to the same base level as any other individual. His expression is truly humbling. How often do we look at these famous, shining people as other and out-there and unaffected? Apart from "the rest of us"?

     And how often are we all of a sudden proven so wrong?

     To be able to relate so deeply to someone seemingly so far out of reach has an entirely humbling effect. In the shadow of sorrow and grief over loss, I would hug this book to my chest and read it time and time again, in search of comfort. Sometimes all the comfort we need is someone who listens and understands, and A Grief Observed is akin to that, without the ability of interrupting or claiming that your feelings are not right or valid.

     It is so easy to dismiss someone's pain as lesser and to compare it to our own in a cruel way of diminishing their experience, and in doing so, do exactly the opposite of comfort them. Lewis would not - could not - do anything of the sort.

     A Grief Observed is something like a heartfelt guide through different stages of grief, guaranteed to carry you through, step by step, as the author himself undergoes each.

--Elise--

For more information on A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis, visit our website here.

Messy Spirituality

"My life is a mess.
After forty-five years of trying to follow Jesus, I keep losing him in the crowded busyness of my life. I know Jesus is there, somewhere, but it's difficult to make him out in the haze of everyday life.
[...]
I want to be a good person. I don't want to fail. I want to learn from my mistakes, rid myself of distractions, and run into the arms of Jesus. Most of the time, however, I feel like I am running away from Jesus into the arms of my own clutteredness."

--Messy Spirituality, Chapter One, page 18

     From page one (or rather, page 18, where he begins to share after the foreword written by his wife, Karla), Michael Yaconelli is brutally honest about himself. And, to a point, about the reader.

     The premise of Messy Spirituality is based on the foundation that it is relatable. No matter what stage you are at in your faith, it can seem like not enough. You're not spiritual enough, not committed enough; you don't have enough faith, you don't love God enough, you don't share your faith enough, you don't pray enough, you don't read your Bible enough. Everyone tries to measure up to everyone else in a detrimental spiral of comparison and shame, and in the end there is no pay off, because faith is a personal thing. You cannot compare.

     Enough.

     Yaconelli suggests that maybe faith "begins with admitting we will never have our act completely together". He addresses spiritual perfectionism as a common struggle, and Messy Spirituality provides thoughts to help change those habits. The growth of your faith is something between you and God, and God sees everyone as they are: messy, imperfect, and absolutely beloved. Pastors, missionaries, worship leaders - they all struggle with the temptations and the doubts of everyday life as much as the next individual. Your position, your profession, your calling - does not determine the level of your faith.

     Yaconelli offers encouragement, to those of us who feel like we are not enough. He provides assurance and a sense of direction. He does not necessarily say that your faith doesn't need some work - that would be untrue for anyone, at any point in time - but he wants to remind anyone and everyone who have all somehow forgotten that faith and spirituality are not neat, clear, clean, or straight forward. Not always. Not for everyone. It is a constant, lifelong struggle; a work continually in progress.

     And that can be a very comforting thought.

--Elise--

For more information on Michael Yaconelli's book Messy Spirituality, visit us at our website here:
http://www.houseofjames.com/store/details/9780310277309