I just finished Eric Metaxas's new biography of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy. I have to say that from the title (with its all-too-obvious echo of John Le Carre's novel) to the writing style itself, I found the biography to be somewhat long-winded. He lionized Bonhoeffer a lot more than I was prepared to swallow, which reminded me of why I don't usually like reading biographies.

On the other hand, I'm not very familiar with the details of Nazi Germany, so I appreciated being able to read about the battle that the church faced as the Nazis rose to power. Metaxas did a solid job of outlining the theological stakes involved in that struggle. Also, I did very much appreciate some of the direct quotes I found along the way from Bonhoeffer's work.

[On contemplating marriage in the midst of World War II:]

The chief characteristic of such occasions [weddings] essentially rested in the fact that, in the face of the “last” times (I do not mean this to sound quite so apocalyptic), someone dares to take a step of such affirmation of the earth and its future. It was then always very clear to me that a person could take this step as a Christian truly only from within a very strong faith and on the basis of grace. For here in the midst of the final destruction of all things, one desires to build; in the midst of a life lived from hour to hour and from day to day, one desires a future; in the midst of being driven out from the earth, one desires a bit of space; in the midst of widespread misery, one desires some happiness. And the overwhelming thing is that God says yes to this strange longing, that here God consents to our will, whereas it is usually meant to be just the opposite. 

[Bonhoeffer on grieving for the death of a good friend during World War II:]

Where God tears great gaps we should not try to fill them with human words. They should remain open. Our only comfort is the God of the resurrection, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who also was and is his God. In him we know our brothers and in him is the biding fellowship of those who have overcome and those who still await their hour. God be praised for our dead brother and be merciful to us all at our end.

 [On death itself, in a vein reminiscent of C.S. Lewis:]

No one has yet believed in God and the kingdom of God, no one has yet heard about the realm of the resurrected, and not been homesick from that hour, waiting and looking forward joyfully to being released from bodily existence. Whether we are young or old makes no difference.

What are twenty or thirty or fifty years in the sight of God? And which of us knows how near he or she may already be to the goal? That life only really begins when it ends here on earth, that all that is here is only the prologue before the curtain goes up—that is for young and old alike to think about. Why are we so afraid when we think about death? … Death is only dreadful for those who live in dread and fear of it. Death is not wild and terrible, if only we can be still and hold fast to God’s Word. Death is not bitter, if we have not become bitter ourselves. Death is grace, the greatest gift of grace that God gives to people who believe in him. Death is mild, death is sweet and gentle; it beckons to us with heavenly power, if only we realize that it is the gateway to our homeland, the tabernacle of joy, the everlasting kingdom of peace.

How do we know that dying is so dreadful? Who knows whether, in our human fear and anguish we are only shivering and shuddering at the most glorious, heavenly, blessed event in the world?

Death is hell and night and cold, if it is not transformed by our faith. But that is just what is so marvelous, that we can transform death.

Some wonderful quotes from Knowing God to end the week:

God was happy without man before man was made; He would have continued happy had He simply destroyed man after man had sinned; but as it is He has set His love upon particular sinners, and this means that, by His own free voluntary choice, He will not know perfect and unmixed happiness again till He has brought every one of them to heaven. He has in effect resolved that henceforth for all eternity His happiness shall be conditional upon ours. Thus God saves, not only for His glory, but also for His gladness. This goes far to explain why it is that there is joy (God’s own joy) in the presence of the angels when a sinner repents (Luke 15:10), and why there will be ‘exceeding joy’ when God sets us faultless at the last day in His own holy presence (Jude 24). The thought passes understanding and almost beggars belief, but there is no doubt that, according to Scripture, such is the love of God. – Packer, 113

Brooks, another Puritan, opens it [Galatians 3:29] up as follows, ‘… that is as if he said, You shall have as true an interest in all my attributes for your good, as they are mine for my own glory… My grace, saith God, shall be yours to pardon you, and my power shall be yours to protect you, and my wisdom shall be yours to direct you, and my goodness shall be yours to relieve you, and my mercy shall be yours to supply you, and my glory shall be yours to crown you. This is a comprehensive promise, for God to be our God: it includes all….’ This is what God does for those He loves—the best He can; and the measure of the best that God can do is omnipotence! – Packer, 114-115

A quote for your Friday morning:

'God is love’ is the complete truth about God so far as the Christian is concerned. To say ‘God is light’ is to imply that God’s holiness finds expression in everything that He says and does. Similarly, the statement ‘God is love’ means that His love finds expression in everything that He says and does. The knowledge that this is so for him personally is the Christian’s supreme comfort. As a believer, he finds in the cross of Christ assurance that he, as an individual, is beloved of God; ‘the Son of God… loved me, and gave himself for me’ (Gal. 2:20). Knowing this, he is able to apply to himself the promise that all things work together for good to them that love God and are called according to His purpose (Rom. 8:28). Not just some things, note, but all things! Every single thing that happens to him expresses God’s love for him, and comes to him for the furthering of God’s purpose for him. Thus, so far as he is concerned, God is love to him—holy, omnipotent love—at every moment and in every event of every day’s life. Even when he cannot see the why and the wherefore of God’s dealings, he knows that there is love in and behind them, and so he can rejoice always, even when, humanly speaking, things are going wrong. He knows that the true story of his life, when known, will prove to be, as the hymn says, ‘mercy from first to last’—and he is content.

– J.I. Packer, Knowing God, 111

Scott and I have managed to fit a significant amount of outdoor work around our other labours during these past two weeks. Today I cut the first five daffodils of the season to bring inside and sit in a mason jar on the kitchen table. No fear; plenty more where that came from!

On Monday morning, while I was doing my quiet time, snow flurries were falling outside, but by this afternoon, almost all the daffodils on the southeast terraces were open--the big classic yellow ones, which are always first, as well as the flatter white ones with pale yellow centres. The crocuses are on the wane, and the snowdrops, which I love (like tiny origami cranes suspended on the most delicate threadlike stems), have disintegrated into brown fuzz under the dogwood.

Also this week our new shipment of roses arrived. We have fifteen roses planted on the south side of the house now. We have three Munstead Wood, a deep maroon; three Glamis Castle, which are white; three Queen of Sweden, which are enormous and palest pink; three Graham Thomas, which are yellow, and wiry climbers; and three Lady of Shalott, which are also supposed to be enormous, and are a rich coppery-orange colour.

Under the early spring sun, the vegetable garden beds look so barren, so desolate, so vulnerable. The sun feels gracious to my skin but harsh on the naked dirt as it beats through the leafless hackberry, and I wonder if we’ll have any success in the end. Today, though, I saw the first tiny lettuce sprouts in the corner bed under the redbud. Appropriately enough, Scott and I managed to rig the deer fencing today, which will hopefully protect our plants from herbivores.

Now Playing: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers soundtrack by Howard Shore, "The Black Gate Opens."

Good old standby, perfect for lesson-planning and commenting on poems for workshop.

A couple of photos from our Easter Sunday:

We enjoyed sunshine, a tremendous Easter lunch, and an Easter egg hunt at the Hs' house, complete with Mary, Grant, a wide selection of the Hs' extended family, and another family from church. Happy times. Against the backdrop of everything else going on, a reminder of our lasting fellowship in Christ.