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C.S. Elston

Worshipper, Husband, Author, Screenwriter, Home Cook, Fan

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Common Design?

September 14, 2018 By C.S. Elston

I thought, this week, instead of a typical blog post, I would post a small excerpt from the first novel I wrote and had published, “The Four Corners.” I’m currently writing the sequel, “The Four Corners of Darkness,” so my head is in that space right now. The following is approximately the first page of a chapter entitled “A World Aware” and it occurs almost half way through the book. My hope with this post is that it can spark some conversation. I’ll paste, below the excerpt, links to where you can find me on various social media platforms. I’d love to know what kind of thoughts this excerpt generates about both the scientific and spiritual implications.

Without further adieux:

Like a plant, every person begins as a seed. Each seed contains the genetic make-up, passed on through the generations of family members in the lineage of the father who produced that seed.

It is then placed in the mother’s womb where it adds the genetic make-up from her lineage. The mother of all plants is the earth itself and, therefore, that womb is the soil the earth provides. For people, the womb is inside the mother’s abdomen.

Both wombs provide protection from the outside environment so that the seed can grow and start the process of becoming what it was created to be. Inside both wombs, the seed is provided with the nourishment required to mature into the plant or person it needs to become before it is ready to enter the outside world.

However, once the plant or person has entered that world, it is not meant to be detached from its mother just yet. The plant still has its roots embedded in the womb it came from and the person, while not physically, still does as well.

Both continue receiving nourishment from their mother. The plant still gets it directly from its mother’s womb. The person, however, can then be fed by either parent. Or, even another person.

In the outside world, the protection of the mother’s womb has significantly decreased. Both plants and people are still growing into what they were created to be but that growth is determined by additional factors. Not the least of which, physically for the plant and spiritually for the person, is how much exposure they have to both the light and the dark.

 

 

Excerpt from “The Four Corners” used with permission from Electric Quill Press, LLC.

 

Find C.S. Elston on: Twitter – @cselston; Facebook – facebook.com/cselston; LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/cselston

Filed Under: About Me, Blog, Faith, Home, My Books Tagged With: book, book series, Books, children, Christian, Christian books, christian fiction, christianity, conversation, Creation, dad, debate, evolution, faith, family, Four Corners, Intelligent design, mom, parenting, parents, plants, pregnancy, pregnant, religion, roots, science, sequel, spirituality

The Reason for the Season

December 7, 2017 By C.S. Elston

 

By now, most of us have heard that Jesus was more likely born in early fall than on December 25th and that many of the popular customs associated with Christmas actually pre-date the holiday and were probably adopted from winter solstice celebrations by pagan populations that later converted to Christianity. We also know that we’re supposed to be full of “Christmas cheer” for three or four weeks as winter settles in but, instead, find ourselves yelling at each other in parking lots, spending money on things we can’t afford and tackling strangers in the toy aisle at Walmart. So, what exactly are we celebrating and why are we celebrating it?

When in doubt, take it back to the basics and refuse to get caught up in the minutia. Regardless of when Jesus was born, the miraculous thing is that the Word became flesh. What does that mean and why does it matter? One of my favorite authors, C.S. Lewis, put it this way:

“The Son of God became a man to enable men to become sons of God.”

~ C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Let’s look closely at the specifics behind Lewis’ statement. And, to do so, let’s go straight to a modern translation of the original source material. The book of John begins by telling us this:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

~ John 1:1-5, English Standard Version

These five verses are packed with life-transforming information. First, they tell us that the Word was both with God and was God from the very beginning of everything. Second, they tell us that the Word is responsible for all of creation. Third, they tell us that the Word contains the life that is the light of humanity which is not overcome by darkness.

From the Garden of Eden to the moment of Jesus’ birth, humanity had proven over and over again that we could not overcome sin on our own. Left to our own devices, we were headed for death. We were headed for eternal darkness. We needed the life that is the light that would not be overcome. The light that is only in the Word. Later in that first chapter of John, God showed us mercy and gave us that light:

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

~ John 1:14, English Standard Version

Lewis stated the importance of this event for us with precision:

“The central miracle asserted by Christians is the Incarnation. They say that God became Man. Every other miracle prepares for this, or exhibits this, or results from this.”

~ C.S. Lewis, Miracles

The birth of Jesus Christ is the single most important event in all of human history. God became man. Feel the weight of that statement. The Creator became the Creation. The highest being in existence descended into a world he created perfect because it had since been infected by sin and he knew that the sacrifice he was making was the one and only way to redeem it, to redeem us. We needed . . . and still . . . We need Jesus!

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”

~ John 3:16-17, English Standard Version

 

Our good friend, Lewis, put it this way:

“In the Christian story God descends to re-ascend. He comes down; down from the heights of absolute being into time and space, down into humanity . . . But He goes down to come up again and bring the ruined world up with Him . . . “

~ C.S. Lewis, Miracles

Praise his name! Fake tree, real tree, no tree . . . Who cares? All that really matters is that the miracle of Christmas is absolutely worth celebrating. The God of all creation loves us so much that he came down in order to take us back up with him, where he always intended us to be! And, even in a crowded shopping mall parking lot or the toy aisle at Walmart, the miracle and the meaning of Christmas should absolutely fill your heart with joy. It sure does mine.

And, it is with that joyous heart that I wish you all a very merry Christmas!

Filed Under: Blog, Faith, Home Tagged With: Bible, C.S. Lewis, Christmas, Christmas cheer, Christmas miracle, Christmas present, christmas shopping, Christmas spirit, Christmas tree, Creation, Creator, December 25th, English Standard Version, ESV, faith, gift present, God, holiday, incarnation, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Mere Christianity, merry christmas, Miracles, nativity, reason for the season, Salvation, Scripture, season, sin, sins, Son of God, Walmart, Winter, Word, Word of God

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