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"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."
This is no normal conversion to Christianity, but this is how C. S. Lewis narrates his journey of faith in his book, Surprised by Joy.
Like many parts of Lewis' life, his conversion is full of surprises, twists and turns, and evidence of God's work. Throughout his life, Lewis was blessed with rich friendships, and in this episode, his friends, his past, and the God he had been "trying not to meet" come together in a remarkable and reluctant conversion.
Before his conversion, he sought safety among books and education. Yet these were the very tools God used to pursue Lewis. These pursuits were subtle but effective. As Lewis later looked back on his story, he had the humility to understand that God was the author of his story, not himself.
Lewis considered himself a theist before he became a Christian. Surprisingly, J.R.R. Tolkien (author of Lord of the Rings) played a significant part in Lewis’ faith journey. Tolkien said something to the effect of, “Christianity is the true version of all these things that you love”. Beauty that is seen and appreciated by the world (things that are truly beautiful) find their full meaning and purpose in the Christian worldview. Christianity is the only religion that tells the whole truth about the whole world.
At this point, he was a theist but not a Christian. This is a step that many converts skip completely and go straight to Jesus’ life, death, burial, and resurrection. As a theist, he began to attend church and learned about Jesus Christ and the incarnation. He never missed a service and eventually fell deeply in love with the Christ of Scripture.
Brittany Proffitt lives in Dallas and is a writer and content manager for So We Speak.