Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Take the Adventure That is Sent Us

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Recently, I finished my yearly read-through of The Chronicles of Narnia. Each time I read them or listen to them, something new strikes me.

This time, the concept of adventure stood out to me.

Reepicheep

In The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Reepicheep is always harping on honor and adventure. The little mouse’s courage pushes everyone on the crew to greater heights of courage because they refuse to be outdone by a mouse. The others sometimes become annoyed with Reepicheep because everything is an adventure to him. Any time they want to turn back or be cautious, Reepicheep pulls the adventure card, and they can’t turn back.

“This is a very great adventure, and no danger seems to me so great as that of knowing when I get back to Narnia that I left a mystery behind me through fear.” Reepicheep in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

But for all his annoyance with Reepicheep, King Caspian seems to have remembered Reepicheep’s words because in both The Silver Chair and The Last Battle, descendants of King Caspian also emphasize adventure.

“Doubtless,” said the Prince. “This signifies that Aslan will be our good lord, whether he means us to live or die…let us descend into the City and take the adventure that is sent us.” – Prince Rilian in The Silver Chair

In the end, Eustace and Jill begged so hard that Tirian said they could come with him and take their chance–or, as he much more sensibly called it “the adventure that Aslan would send them.” – The Last Battle

The amazing thing about these quotes? They all happened, not when the characters were facing something fun and safe, but when they faced danger and a great possibility of death. Actually, death was the most likely outcome.

Death, an adventure?

Yes, that’s the point. Everything in our life is God’s adventure given to us. The good things. The bad things. The horrible things we’d rather never, ever face.

Let that sink in.

Life is an adventure.

Death is an adventure.

Everything in between is an adventure.

As Reepicheep would say, it is the greatest adventure that has ever been heard of.

But we don’t always treat life as an adventure. We live like it’s the dullest thing ever. A lot of times it is, but even epic voyages had long days of sailing on boring, empty seas with barely a breeze to push the ship along. But that’s still part of the adventure. You can’t get to the next island without the boring sailing in between.

This was something I’ve been thinking about even before re-reading The Chronicles of Narnia, which is probably why it struck me this time. I’ve been thinking about it ever since reading A Time to Die by Nadine Brandes, a book that asks the question: how you would live if you knew when you’d die. Would you live your time or would you waste it?

And when you find you have time, what do you do with it? That’s one theme of the sequel A Time to Speak that releases on October 16. You’ll be hearing a lot more about that book since I’m a part of Nadine’s launch team and it’s made me think a little more about what I’m doing with the time I’ve been given.

God has given me this life, this adventure. It can be scary. Overwhelming. Adventures usually are. But that doesn’t mean I can’t be a little bit more like Reepicheep and face it with courage and an adventurous spirit. Because what biggest regret is there than turning back and leaving an adventure undone?

What about you? What adventures has God given you?

Why I Write Speculative Fiction

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The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is my favorite book in the Chronicles of Narnia. I always loved the thrill of the sea voyage. I could feel the sea breeze on my face, hear the creaking of the ship’s timbers, and touch the cold spray on my face. I was always sad when it ended and Edmund and Lucy had to leave Narnia for the last time.

But Aslan tells them that he is in there world too. “But there I have another name. You must learn to know me by that name. This was the very reason why you were brought to Narnia, that by knowing me here for a little, you may know me better there.”
― C.S. Lewis, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

I knew Aslan’s other name. I knew C.S. Lewis referred to Jesus and I did know Jesus in our world.

As I began writing and telling my own stories, I realized Lewis was giving his reason for writing the entire Chronicles of Narnia in that quote. He hoped that his readers would get to know Christ a little in Narnia so that they could know Him better in their own lives.

This has become my goal as a writer. Like Lewis, I like to write speculative fiction, especially fantasy. Even if my fantasy doesn’t directly reference God or Christ, it still shows Christian morals and decision, much the same way that J.R.R. Tolkien showed Christ throughout The Lord of the Rings.

But my goal is always the same. I might be only showing a tiny aspect of Christ, a fragment of all the glories that He is, but my prayer is that God will use my small efforts to help readers know Him a little better.

Fantasy gives me the freedom to approach topics from different angles, much in the way that Lewis gave us different angles to Christ through Aslan. Historical fiction can only go so far. Fantasy can make us think about our faith differently.

What genre do you write? What is your goal in writing it?