A dogmatic belief in objective value is necessary to the very idea of a rule which is not tyranny or an obedience which is not slavery.
C. S. LewisRead
I do not believe one can settle how much we ought to give. I am afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare.
Interpretation
The quote suggests that generosity should exceed what is comfortable, as true giving requires sacrifice.
C. S. Lewis expresses the idea that determining an exact amount of generosity is challenging, and instead, one should aim to give beyond their comfortable limits. This perspective encourages deeper reflection on the essence of giving and the importance of being willing to sacrifice for the benefit of others, suggesting that true generosity is rooted in selflessness rather than calculating benefits.
In practice
During a charity event, this quote could be used to inspire attendees to contribute more than they initially planned.
A dogmatic belief in objective value is necessary to the very idea of a rule which is not tyranny or an obedience which is not slavery.
I enjoyed my breakfast this morning, and I think that was a good thing and do not think it was condemned by God. But I do not think myself a good man for enjoying it.
Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.
Forgiving and being forgiven are two names for the same thing. The important thing is that a discord has been resolved.
I pray because I can't help myself. I pray because I'm helpless. It doesn't change God - it changes me.
The instrument through which you see God is your whole self. And if a man's self is not kept clean and bright, his glimpse of God will be blurred
What we see in the outer is but a reflection of the inner, because we surround ourselves with a picture of our own beliefs. In other words, we manifest in general what we seriously think and believe. So if we want to find out what our habitual thinking is like, we have but to look around us and ask ourselves what we really see.
Good bye, proud world! I'm going home; Thou art not my friend, and I'm not thine
Birds rising in flight is a sign that the enemy is lying in ambush; when the wild animals are startled and flee he is trying to take you unaware.
The most important problems we face are complex, and require sustained attention. But we don't speak in terms of nuance or complexity. Is that by accident? It's because our minds have been entrained to expect shorter and shorter bite-sized bits.
We want freedom. We want freedom from the constraints of the cycles of the sun and the moon. We want freedom from drought and weather, freedom from the movement of game, the growth of plants, freedom from control from mendacious popes and kings, freedom from ideology, freedom from want. This idea of freeing ourselves has become the compass of the human journey.
A life is measured by how it is lived for the sake of heaven.
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