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Yesterday’s post was so fun I couldn’t stop:

“No man was ever taken to hell by a woman unless he already had a ticket in his pocket or at least had been fooling around with timetables.” –Rex Stout, Some Buried Caesar

As a former youth minister, I can tell you: there are a lot of people out there teaching girls that all sexual sin out there is their fault. Must be nice to be a boy growing up in that fault-free environment!

“We are all vainer of our luck than of our merits.” –Rex Stout, The Rubber Band

Some judge the poor of the world as though their lot in life is entirely a result of lack of effort. That is the easiest way to live with excess in a world of suffering.

“Afraid? I can dodge folly without backing into fear.” –Rex Stout, The Doorbell Rang

This would be a great phrase to know as a teen facing peer pressure.

“Why was this bloody world created?"
"As a sewer for the stars," a voice in front of him said. "Alternatively to know God and to glorify Him forever."
" [...] The two answers are not, of course, necessarily alternative.” –Charles Williams, War in Heaven

I love systems of belief that embrace paradox, or at least multiple answers to a question.

“Now the trouble about trying to make yourself stupider than you really are is that you very often succeed.” –C. S. Lewis, The Magician’s Nephew

It seems this is the mission of mankind. Just look at the intellectual elite.

“They would say,” he answered, “that you do not fail in obedience through lack of love, but have lost love because you never attempted obedience.” ― C.S. Lewis, That Hideous Strength

The context in the story is marriage, but this also applies to the walk of discipleship.

“It was all very well going on about pure logic and how the universe was ruled by logic and the harmony of numbers, but the plain fact of the matter was that the Disc was manifestly traversing space on the back of a giant turtle and the gods had a habit of going round to atheists' houses and smashing their windows.” –Terry Pratchett, The Color of Magic

I love the idea of this absurdist author laughing at the idea of atheists in his creation.

“A dog reflects the family life. Whoever saw a frisky dog in a gloomy family, or a sad dog in a happy one? Snarling people have snarling dogs, dangerous people have dangerous ones.” ― Arthur Conan Doyle, The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes

As a dog owner—and of a nice dog I hope—I like to think this observation is true.

“Watson. Come at once if convenient. If inconvenient, come all the same.” ― Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes: Adventure of the Creeping Man

Now that is leadership!

“I daren't come and drink," said Jill. "Then you will die of thirst," said the Lion.
"Oh dear!" said Jill, coming another step nearer. "I suppose I must go and look for another stream then."
"There is no other stream," said the Lion.” ― C.S. Lewis, The Silver Chair

“So, thanking you kindly for our supper, if these two gentlemen and the young lady are ready, we're leaving your court at once and setting out in the dark to spend our lives looking for Overland. Not that our lives will be very long, I should think; but that's a small loss if the world's as dull a place as you say.” ― C.S. Lewis, The Silver Chair

These last two are small portions of much larger texts in my second favorite tome of The Chronicles of Narnia. You really ought to search them out and read them in full.