I am reading Scott Cairns The End of Suffering, for the second time this week. Since the book is only 115 pages, it is fairly easy to get through in a single pass. Although, this time around I will be taking my time to focus on each chapter intently. I highly recommend this book to anyone, and have begged most of my friends and family to read it.
I will give you a small taste of what Cairns’ book has to offer:
Those of us who struggle with habitual sins-and we know who we are-are very likely to break our hearts over the business of turning away from those chronic mark missings. Our problems with recurring sin, and the more general human problem of being enslaved by sin, is never solved simply by our rejecting that sin, no matter how many times we try, no matter how strenuously we struggle to reject it.
This is because merely rejecting sin-that is, focusing on not sinning-is finally just another species of infernal no.
“Just say no” is an insufficient principle.
The strongest man or woman in the world is not nearly strong enough to triumph over his or her sin simply by saying no to it. What we need is the strength-giving grace occasioned by our saying yes to something else, by our saying yes, and yes, and yes-ceaselessly-to Someone else.
It is not our finally turning away from sin that frees us from sin’s recurrence; rather it is our turning toward Christ-and the mystery of our continuing to turn into Him-that puts sin behind us.
Amen.
The End of Suffering can be found at Eighth Day Books here in Wichita, KS (or you can buy it from them online!).
Thanks to my good friend Jack for recommending this book to me.
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