In his book, Surprised by Joy, C. S. Lewis shares that one thing that he hated the most was interference.  What he wanted more than anything else was “a barbed wire fence and guard with a notice No Admittance.”  But that was what he found in Christianity before he became a Christian, a “transcendental Interferer.”  It’s something he ought to reckon with before he finally gave himself fully to Christ.

Perhaps we can relate to C. S. Lewis; we, too, wish that we could go on living our lives, our ways and our choices.  But that is not so, isn’t it?  We cannot go on living our lives, our ways and our choices.  We must submit to God as He sometimes “interferes” with our affairs.  What we planned does not materialize; what we never planned is happening before our eyes.  And we can’t fight it because the more we fight it, the more damage we’ll inflict on us and those around us. 

What we call “interference,” God calls “guidance.”  And He guides by many means, some pleasant, but some painful.  Not too long ago with much hope and prayer, a colleague in ministry applied for aid to study abroad.  She had already looked at schools that she would like to attend and asked for my input as to what area would be good for her continuing education.  In one word, she was “excited.” But then came the crushing response: The aid was not granted.  God interfered, God guided, even though for that He had to hurt her.  But hurt and disappointment never deter God from giving His best love for His children.  In His time and His way, He guides and gives.

God interfered in the life of C. S. Lewis in a big time when He took his beloved wife, Joy.  He was deeply hurt and disappointed; in fact, he almost abandoned his faith in Jesus.  But God reached down and lifted him up.  He gave him strength but more importantly He made Lewis a more wholesome man: A man of sorrow, not only intellect.

Pastor Paul