Another Lesson Learned in Narnia- Reepicheep

‘“Oh! Ugh! What on earth’s that! Take it away the horrid thing.‘

Lucy and Edmond recognized it at once—Reepicheep, the most valiant of all the talking beasts of Narnia and the chief mouse.” The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, C. S. Lewis

2 Chronicles 16:9 “For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him…”

Reepicheep is small in stature but mighty in valor.  He knows his size but is not limited by it.  He sees the task and remembers for whom it is that the task needs to be done.  He does not let his appearance define him but rather lets his definition come, from the grandness of the one he serves with an unquenchable loyalty. Narnia’s most valiant of all the talking beasts is one who would seem the least likely.  There are no noble giants, named as heroes, in Narnia. 

First Lesson learned from the life of Reepicheep:  Loyalty is a quality that enables the smallest of creatures to become the noblest. It breeds courage and fosters respect. It humbly serves without reserve the one for whom its heart holds undying love.

Reepicheep knows his creator and understands his relationship to him.  He does not see himself as just a mouse.  He sees himself as a mouse in service to his magnificent creator.  He sees himself and the job he had been given through the eyes of the one he serves. He accepts life with all its difficulties and disadvantages. He refuses to conjure up lies about himself in an endeavor to compensate for who and what he is not.

Second Lesson learned from the life of Reepicheep:  Those who know and believe the truth will live the truth.

Reepicheep had the truth so embedded in who he was that he was able to believe that his purpose was far greater than just being a mouse. It was greater still than being the Chief Mouse.  His purpose went beyond even what he could do in service for Aslan.  He believed that his greatest purpose was to travel to the ends of the world, if need be, to find Aslan in all his glory.

Reepicheep loved the truth.  He faced great dangers valiantly in a world which by all intents and purposes should have overwhelmed him and sent him scurrying to hide in some obscure hole in the wall. I too,must be first and foremost a seeker of truth. I am on an endless quest for treasure. I too, face a world that is vast and uncertain, filled with unknown dangers. I must be careful not to mistake a lie for a truth.  Any lie whether my own or my enemy’s, planted in the heart of me, if allowed to grow there, can become a core belief and will bring a harvest I will not desire.

God has given me truth in His Word. I need to know it and believe it in my core.  Someday, life will end and I will stand before God.  When that day finally comes, I long to hear the words, “Well done.” The ultimate question is, “How do I live this Christian life in such a way as to insure, that the One I love even more than life itself, will somehow be pleased with the final outcome of all that I am and will become?”  

The answer I think is simple. The essence of Christianity can be boiled down to just two very essential practices: First, I must strive to live in humble submission to the truths revealed to me in God’s Word.  Second, I must live in the joy of contentment of who I am through having an unleashed passionate worship of God, delighting in the One who created me and deems me of such incredible value that He has chosen to make His home in the very heart of me.