Susan Watkins -- Muffing the Signs

In Class Reading #3 (Chronicles)


I think that of all the Chronicles of Narnia, The Silver Chair would have to be my favorite. The speech that Puddleglum gives about the dream of Narnia and Aslan being far preferable to the reality of Underworld just blows me away every time... but aside from that, I think the book incorporates several themes which are just so relevant to our everyday lives. One of my favorites is Jill "muffing the signs" that Aslan gave her.

Aslan, the benevolent ruler of Narnia, is sure to give Jill very clear and detailed signs that she should follow in order to successfully locate the Prince Rilian. It's clear that He wants her to succeed-- we know from earlier books that He is kind and good, and we also know the He loves Caspian and would be concerned about the king's son. His provision begins even at the very begnning of the story, though Jill has already displayed some less-than-honorable traits like pride. He desires to care for her during her adventure, though an adventure it will be.

However, as time goes on it just seems like Jill cannot get things right. She misses the first sign because she is irritated with Eustace, and the king Caspian sails away and out of their reach although Aslan had said they should talk to him. Later on in the story, she and Eustace are both guilty of getting distracted and not listening to Puddleglum's wisdom about visiting the giants' castle. This indirectly leads to her missing the second sign, the letters carved in stone giving them directions to the Underworld lair of the Enchantress. It's only by accident that they discover them and that happens after a considerable amount of trouble with the giants. If Jill alone had been responsible for the trip, it's possible that Rilian never would have been rescued and the story would have ended quite sadly.

However, Aslan never leaves the children and never stops providing for them. Throughout all the troubles and mishaps He knows their circumstances and helps them out, directly or indirectly. I love this image because it is so like our lives and God-- He has given us such a beautiful example and instruction for how to live and live to the fullest, but if we had anything to do with it we would mess it up every time. However, He's never far from us and never out of control even in the most disastrous situations. His provision is unceasing whether we turn away or not, and He is planning a perfect ending for our story ending in salvation and emerging into Narnia from the trap of Underworld.