Pretend

The other day, I was reading something that used the word "believe"... which prompted me to Google the etymology of the word "believe"... which, then, had me looking-up "make believe"... which, in turn, led me to researching "pretense"... where my boat docked at "pretend". 

"to claim that or act as if something is different from what it actually is..."

Last year, I became a reader. Whilst becoming more involved with my imagination, I took on all the cliché series- Twilight, The Chronicles, and I'm currently on the 4th of the 7 Harry Potter books. This is all beside the point.... I just wanted to brag. In reading the Chronicles of Narnia, I had so many moments I wanted to just burst into a blog post about what a perfect picture Lewis had just painted about the life of a Christian. I'm sure I have a good excuse as to why I didn't and I have a few half-written drafts to prove I tried. But the other day, when the train that is my brain hopped from "belief" to "pretend", I remembered one of my favourite stories from Narnia. 

spoiler alert!

In The Silver Chair, the reality is that Prince Rilian has been under an enchantment and for one hour out of the night, the enchantment is broken and he is free. But the witch has him bound to a silver chair for that one hour! She has convinced him that he becomes spellbound for that hour and that she is saving him from himself during that hour. When I was reading all he had to say while he was bound to the chair, I thought about how interesting it is that we are freed yet live as slaves. 

"Long my imprisoned spirit lay, 
Fast bound in sin and nature's night; 
Thine eye diffused a quickening ray;
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee."

Reality is that there is a God Who has freed us from the bondage of self-reliance and blinding pride. He's set us free from a one-dimensional standard of living and has unfolded our loads into meaning. Yet, humanity pretends. We act as if something is different from what it actually is. Some knowingly, some unknowingly; either way, we are deceived.