This old gate is one that C. S. Lewis would have passed many times on his way to Holy Trinity Church at Headington Quarry in England. I don’t know why I thought of this quote from Prince Caspian when I posted it last night; I just did. I hope you enjoy it, too. And if you have not read Lewis’s Narnia books, the summer is a great time to do just that—read.

“He led them to the right of the dancing trees—whether they were still dancing nobody knew, for Lucy had her eyes on the Lion and the rest had their eyes on Lucy.”

Here’s one of my favorite quotes from C. S. Lewis’s book The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. (Aslan is speaking) “If the Witch knew the true meaning of sacrifice, she might have interpreted the deep magic differently. That when a willing victim who has committed no treachery, is killed in a traitor’s stead, the stone table will crack, and even death itself would turn backwards.”

Just received a Twitter from St. Paul’s Cathedral in London saying today marks the 70th anniversary of evacuation of British citizens during World War II. Germany had begun bombing raids on the city at night, and the decision was made to send as many people—particularly children—as possible to homes outside of the London area. The Kilns, which is in Oxford and was owned by C.S. Lewis and his brother Warren, became a safe haven for several youngsters during the Blitz.

Blackout curtains still hang on the windows at the Kilns as a reminder of World War II and the precautions people had to take even outside of London.

When life takes a different turn than what you expected, the best place to be on Sunday is in church! One of my favorite verses is found in Psalm 91: “He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings you may seek refuge” (v. 4). I do wish I had the opportunity to walk back through the doors of this old place of worship, but I can’t do that today. It’s located somewhere in the English countryside. But there is a little church down the street that will work just as well.

Since tomorrow is Sunday, I thought it would be nice to post a photo of C. S. Lewis’ church, which is located not too far from the Kilns. I was with two friends on the day that I took this photo. It was damp but not really raining. While visited his grave, we heard organ music and decided to go inside the church. After struggling with the door for several minutes and knocking to see if someone would let us in, we finally lifted a huge iron latch and the door swung open. The chapel was alive with activity. People were busy cleaning and dusting, and yes there was an organist playing heavenly music.