I discovered George MacDonald after reading about the influence that he had on C.S. Lewis, from Lewis himself in his nonfiction book, Miracles. This is one of several instances of a practice I’ve recently committed to, to investigate the works of those people that influenced the great thinkers that I have already begun to learn from, and in finding MacDonald, I am encouraged to continue doing so. Reading his thoughts provides such striking gifts in wisdom, knowledge, and understanding! Even in my minimal exposure to his works (I am reading Unspoken Sermons now), I have found the foundation of my faith in Christ reinforced and stabilized; motivated to move into tomorrow, balanced by truth. As I type this, my wife Megan and I have just passed the 1-year anniversary mark in our marriage and now have a brand-new baby girl named Ruth, who is two-and-a-half months old. As my new family has grown, sadly, so has the distance, relationally, from my parents, my brother, and my sister. Between these two strangely opposing realities of my budding life, a quote of MacDonald’s stood out immediately upon reading it and has continued so since:
“But the rejoicing in heaven is greatest over the sheep that has wandered the farthest–-perhaps was born on the wild hill-side, and not in the fold at all. For such a prodigal, the elder brother in heaven prays thus–-“Lord, think about my poor brother more than about me, for I know thee, and am at rest in thee. I am with thee always.”
These words have echoed in my mind as I’ve prayerfully considered my wife, my daughter, and the now broken family I was raised in. They’ve led me to consider beyond the inner circle of people I know and trust, to my acquaintances and the strangers that I thoughtlessly pass by .“…Lord, think about my poor brother more than about me, for I know thee, and am at rest in thee. I am with thee always.” Whom might I pray for that is not my brother, nor my sister? For me to pray any other way is to succumb to the weakness of my flesh that desires the well-being that I can see and feel above another’s that I cannot. This is the result of George MacDonald’s work in my spirit, to be in my faith, to be in my life, a manifestation of the goodness of God. It is not reserved for any one.