This morning I was reading again a journal article by James I. Packer entitled “Wisdom in a Time of War: What Oswald Chambers and C.S. Lewis Teach Us about Living Through The Long Battle with Terrorism.” He wrote this for the January 2, 2002 edition of  the periodical Christianity Today.

One of the first points he makes is that Christians must think carefully and biblically about our own lives. I found his particular points very salient:

• God gives us life to live for his glory.

• Since the Fall of man (see Genesis 3), tragedy, distortion, frustration, and waste have been the regular marks of life in this world.

• Reason (with a capital R) cannot save us, as its secular worshipers thought it could.

• Knowing and serving Jesus Christ the Redeemer and his Father, who through Christ is now our Father, is the only thing that gives life meaning.

• Death is inescapable and wisdom requires us to remember this and live our lives accordingly.

• While God protects his people against spiritual shipwreck, he often puts them through pain for their spiritual progress and sometimes permits and uses war to that end.

• Christians are called not to understand everything that God is doing but to be faithful to him.