The Best Way of Life
There are so many different ways of life. Some people have a long life, and some a short life. Some are rich, and some are poor. Some are healthy, and some are often sick, or they are crippled or blind. Some are grand folk who get a lot of honor and praise; many live plain, simple lives, and nobody knows anything about them, and some may even fall into disgrace without much fault of their own. Some have lots of friends, and some are lonely. Some are single, and some are married. Some are clever an quick at learning, and others are slow. And a life may change from one kind to another, like going through different towns on a journey.
Which of these different kinds of lives is the best for me? Which should I want to have? Is it better (for me) to be rich or to be poor? Is it better to be healthy or to be ill?
Perhaps you are almost ready to laugh at these questions. You say, "Oh! I know the answer to that; of course it's better to be healthy and rich."
But wait a minute. Here is a different question: Which is the best train to take from London if you want to go to Liverpool? Why, the train that goes there, I suppose! And if there are many, then the train that goes the quickest and straightest way.
All lives lead to Heaven or to Hell
Well, now, where are all those different kinds of lives going to? For they don't go on forever. They are all going to Heaven or else to Hell. Now, which life (for me) is the best? I can hear you all answer at once: "Oh! the life that goes to Heaven is best, and the surer it is to get me there, the better it is!"
Then let us try again. Is it better to be rich or poor? Suppose (it's rather a funny thing to imagine) that a poor man knew that being poor was taking him to Hell; should he try to get rich? Yes! If he was sure, he should! And suppose a rich man knew that his riches were taking him to Hell; shoudl he try hard to get rid of his riches and be poor? Yes, indeed he should.
I should choose the life that will lead me to Heaven
Well, that is the great lesson of this part of the book. Any kind of life can take a man to Heaven, although some kinds (such as lives of honor and riches) very seldom do, and they are very crooked roads! But the only question worth asking about all of them is: "Will this kind of life take me to Heaven?" If it will, it is the best; if not, it is the worst, however nice the name of it sounds.
The picture is rather like a sort of map. All the roads go to Heaven and to Hell; and they go through all sorts of places with the names of the different kinds of lives. Sometimes I can choose my own road; but generally God chooses it for me, and then I know it is a good road for me, if I keep in the right direction. Of course, Heaven is much more lovely and Hell much more dreadful than they are in the picture.
Yes or No?
1. If you manage to love God right, does it matter what else happens to you on earth?
2. Is a long life always better than a short one?
3. Is it better to be rich than to be poor?
4. Is it always better to be well than to be ill?
5. Is it always better than to be ill than to be well?
6. Does it all depend?
7. Does it depend on which helps you most to love God?
8. Does it depend on anything else?
9. Then should you want to be rich and healthy and live long, regardless of whether all that will help you to love God or not?
10. Is the best kind of life the kind that you can use best to get to God and save your soul?
11. Are these retreat pictures meant just to amuse you?
12. When you look at them, should you think about God and your soul all the time?
There are so many different ways of life. Some people have a long life, and some a short life. Some are rich, and some are poor. Some are healthy, and some are often sick, or they are crippled or blind. Some are grand folk who get a lot of honor and praise; many live plain, simple lives, and nobody knows anything about them, and some may even fall into disgrace without much fault of their own. Some have lots of friends, and some are lonely. Some are single, and some are married. Some are clever an quick at learning, and others are slow. And a life may change from one kind to another, like going through different towns on a journey.
Which of these different kinds of lives is the best for me? Which should I want to have? Is it better (for me) to be rich or to be poor? Is it better to be healthy or to be ill?
Perhaps you are almost ready to laugh at these questions. You say, "Oh! I know the answer to that; of course it's better to be healthy and rich."
But wait a minute. Here is a different question: Which is the best train to take from London if you want to go to Liverpool? Why, the train that goes there, I suppose! And if there are many, then the train that goes the quickest and straightest way.
All lives lead to Heaven or to Hell
Well, now, where are all those different kinds of lives going to? For they don't go on forever. They are all going to Heaven or else to Hell. Now, which life (for me) is the best? I can hear you all answer at once: "Oh! the life that goes to Heaven is best, and the surer it is to get me there, the better it is!"
Then let us try again. Is it better to be rich or poor? Suppose (it's rather a funny thing to imagine) that a poor man knew that being poor was taking him to Hell; should he try to get rich? Yes! If he was sure, he should! And suppose a rich man knew that his riches were taking him to Hell; shoudl he try hard to get rid of his riches and be poor? Yes, indeed he should.
I should choose the life that will lead me to Heaven
Well, that is the great lesson of this part of the book. Any kind of life can take a man to Heaven, although some kinds (such as lives of honor and riches) very seldom do, and they are very crooked roads! But the only question worth asking about all of them is: "Will this kind of life take me to Heaven?" If it will, it is the best; if not, it is the worst, however nice the name of it sounds.
The picture is rather like a sort of map. All the roads go to Heaven and to Hell; and they go through all sorts of places with the names of the different kinds of lives. Sometimes I can choose my own road; but generally God chooses it for me, and then I know it is a good road for me, if I keep in the right direction. Of course, Heaven is much more lovely and Hell much more dreadful than they are in the picture.
Yes or No?
1. If you manage to love God right, does it matter what else happens to you on earth?
2. Is a long life always better than a short one?
3. Is it better to be rich than to be poor?
4. Is it always better to be well than to be ill?
5. Is it always better than to be ill than to be well?
6. Does it all depend?
7. Does it depend on which helps you most to love God?
8. Does it depend on anything else?
9. Then should you want to be rich and healthy and live long, regardless of whether all that will help you to love God or not?
10. Is the best kind of life the kind that you can use best to get to God and save your soul?
11. Are these retreat pictures meant just to amuse you?
12. When you look at them, should you think about God and your soul all the time?
Excerpted from My Path to Heaven by Geoffrey Bliss (Sophia Institute Press)
Used with permission.