April 10, 2007
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On Learning Selfless Love
AS THE RUIN FALLS
All this is flashy rhetoric about loving you.
I never had a selfless thought since I was born.
I am mercenary and self-seeking through and through:
I want God, you, all friends, merely to serve my turn.
Peace, re-assurance, pleasure, are the goals I seek,
I cannot crawl one inch outside my proper skin:
I talk of love - a scholar's parrot may talk Greek -
but, self-imprisoned, always end where I begin.Only that now you have taught me (but how late) my lack.
I see the chasm. And everything you are was making
my heart into a bridge by which I might get back
from exile, and grow man. And now the bridge is breaking.
For this I bless you as the ruin falls. The pains
you give me are more precious than all other gains.
- C.S. Lewis
Comments (26)
Beautiful; as should be expected from him.
...and there at the end of it, I can't help thinking of another word-picture painted by a Friend of his: Gandalf, on the Bridge of Khazad Dùm, confronting Durin's Bane. "As the ruin falls".
That's a wonderful piece of poetry. I've heard it before, but didn't realise it was his work. And it seems to me it was as a song.
He is risen indeed...
Nope this was the first time!
I'm glad my bridge isn't the way. Jesus is the way. Good poem; which book is it from? Or, as GK Chesterton would say, "From which book is it?"
"Poems", 1964.
Oh I certainly will, thankyou!
Between you, Natasha, and Rob's sermons that I've been listening to lately, I'm getting quite a bit of C. S. Lewis. The more I hear from his works, the more I admire the man.
What a powerful poem! I'm sorry I'm belated in returning your Resurrection greeting, but better late than never! He is risen indeed!
it sounds like you had a wonderful time! it's hard to go wrong with family and friends get-togethers isn't it?
our family also had a blast! we had a special speaker at our church that morning and it was so cool! he's part Portuguese and read to us from a Bible translated into the dialect/slang from hawaii, i think it was. we loved it. later on, we had family and friends come for lunch, volleyball, and an easter egg hunt. such good times. 
wow. that poem is amazing. thank you for sharing!
Please let me know why your friends named their daughter Luthien! I imagine they got it from the same story, or a variant. Several people have suggested that our little girl will be the only one with that name, and we have been quick to point out that the story from whence it came is actually quite popular with our generation. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised to find that there are several others out there!
Wow...that is truly an amazing poem!
Wow, that's a cool heritage! A pity that it was before you were born! I have really good friends who live in central Alaska, about 2 hours north of Anchorage, near Denali. It was awesome getting to visit them and live in that area for 3 weeks. We had all sorts of adventures.
I would love to go back to Alaska someday, and I wouldn't mind living there either!
My dad was a Navy man, so I can relate to the military heritage!
He served for 24 years before retiring in 2004.
I really like that poem you posted. Thanks for sharing it! It makes one think. That's always a good thing.
I've placed it. I'm pretty sure Phil Keaggy recorded that poem on one of his many CD's
Yes, he did. So have many others since then.
I remembered a little later that it's on Phil Keaggy's Love Broke Thru album from way back when I was about 15. Maybe Mike knows a better one.
Looks like I mis-remembered, or at least overstated that a bit. It's on the above-mentioned Phil Keaggy album, a "live" album of his that I somehow thought was some other band, and a 2001 album called "Identity Crisis" by a group called Thrice. I do *not* recommend the Thrice album (but then I don't much care for "hardcore/punk/metal" amalgamations, either).
have tasha hook you up with a face book. and i might get on xanga every once and a while...
Because as I was jogging, he tried to eat me.
-Matt
Wow! that is an amazing poem! thank you for posting that
Very good! Very powerful. C.S Lewis is amazing!
Thank you! Yes, indeed, to think that we have it hard... Great poem! I've always wondered what C.S. Lewis's poetry was like.
We're the people of God and we're here to say. Livin' for the Lord is the better way. We're the people of God and we're on a quest. Raisin' up the banner of righteousness.
holy moly you've got 21 comments!
hiya! how's it going? =D
thanks
yep yep i'll probably be meeting you in just a few weeks!
Still twinging. I wonder what I did. And I'm no angel that's for sure.
Yeah, Keith Green was a great guy. Very confrontational (ie: Asleep in the Light). It's hard to find music like that anymore. Thank God for the remnant though; there are still guys like Jimmy Needham and Derek Webb writing great music for the Lord!
Near Death expiriences can realy open yer eyes, and makes u think wut u could be doing better in yer life, and is God pls with it?
~Ben
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