Progress

What danger is the pilgrim in,
How many are his foes,
How many ways there are to sin,
No living mortal knows.
Some of the ditch shy are, yet can
Lie tumbling in the mire:
Some though they shun the frying pan,
Do leap into the fire.

[John Bunyan, The Pilgrim's Progress, pg. 363]

I finished reading The Pilgrim's Progress last night.  This poem above was one of the best parts of the book.  Bunyan was a master at bringing out the drama of the Christian life and plastering it on the page in the most memorable way.

Personally speaking, The Pilgrim's Progress was hard for me to read.  I don't think I ever truly "got" the genre and often didn't understand what I was reading.  But I'm still glad I read it.  Not only can I now say that I have actually read the book, I have been enriched by the vivid portraits of the "people" you meet when you're walking down the street of the neighborhood of the dangerous Christian journey.

My biggest take away was that sin is invidious, ubiquitous and our biggest enemy.  We need to live vigilantly.  

Amen.