Welcome to "Peaceable and Kind," the podcast where we explore the transformative power of living out Jesus' call to peace and kindness in our everyday lives. Each week your host, Derek Vreeland, will delve into the stories, Scriptures, and practical steps that help us embody these essential Christian virtues.
Join us as we talk with inspiring guests, reflect on Scripture, and discover ways to bring peace and kindness into our homes, communities, and the world. Whether you're seeking encouragement, guidance, or a deeper understanding of your faith, "Peaceable and Kind" is here to support and uplift you on your spiritual journey.
Let's embark together on this path of grace, compassion, and love, living out the true essence of our faith. Thank you for tuning in, and may the peace of God be with you always.
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In this episode of Peaceable and Kind, Derek Vreeland invites listeners on a journey into the world of The Lord of the Rings. Not as an expert, but as a fellow traveler, Derek reflects on his first deep reading of Tolkien’s epic and the way Middle Earth reshapes how we think about power, mercy, and hope.
Tolkien built a world with its own languages, history, and moral imagination. And unlike fast-paced modern storytelling, this is a story meant to be walked slowly. As Derek explores the parallels between Middle Earth and stories like Star Wars. He highlights a familiar pattern which Joseph Campell described as “The Hero’s Journey”, the story of the unlikely hero drawn into a larger conflict.
At the center of the story is the Ring, a symbol of power that promises control but ultimately enslaves. Tolkien shows that no one is immune to its influence, not even the wise or the good. And yet, woven through the story is a surprising theme: mercy. Acts of pity, especially toward Gollum, become essential to the story’s resolution. In the end, evil is not overcome by strength or heroism alone, but through a mysterious interplay of mercy, weakness, and grace.
Derek reflects on how Tolkien’s story echoes deeply Christian themes: the danger of power, the strength of humility, and the quiet, often unseen work of grace. Even in failure, the story is not over. Middle Earth becomes more than a fictional world. It becomes a lens through which we can better understand our own.
Themes Explored in This Episode
• The Hero’s Journey and Tolkien’s unique twist on it
• Middle-earth as a fully developed world with language and history
• The contrast between Frodo and characters like Luke Skywalker
• The corrupting nature of power
• Mercy as a force that shapes the outcome of the story
• The role of weakness and failure in redemption
• The connection between Tolkien’s storytelling and Christian theology
Resources Mentioned
In Deep Geek YouTube Channel:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVTclEEyY1SKFumpT86h-y6jikkEUKIAH&si=TK7h1wSebJVOxf98
Books Mentioned
• The Fellowship of the Ring – J.R. Tolkien
• The Two Towers – J.R. Tolkien
• The Return of the King – J.R. Tolkien
• Hero with a Thousand Faces – Jospeh Campbell
Has Peaceable and Kind been meaningful to you? Support the show by:
Leaving a review
Giving us a 5-star rating on your podcast app
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Order Derek's new Bible Study Series, God in the Neighborhood:
Book 1: Incarnation: 8 Lessons on How God Meets Us || https://amzn.to/42jSZAs
Book 2: Crucifixion: 8 Lessons on How God Saves Us || https://amzn.to/459bNUk
Book 3: Resurrection: 8 Lessons on How God Restores Us || https://amzn.to/40T0sp0
Learn more about Derek’s work as a pastor and author: https://derekvreeland.com
Interact with Derek on Instagram, Twitter, Bluesky, or Facebook
Episode 97: Celebrating the Resurrection
Episode 97
Thursday, April 9, 2026 • Duration 34:40
In this Easter episode of Peaceable and Kind, Derek Vreeland celebrates the resurrection of Jesus and reflects on why Easter stands at the very center of the Christian faith. While many churches may not follow the traditional rhythms of the Christian calendar, nearly all Christians celebrate Easter, and for good reason. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then the entire Christian story collapses. The resurrection is the lynchpin of our faith and the event that explains why Christianity exists at all.
Drawing on insights from N. T. Wright, Derek explores the historical shock of the resurrection in the first-century Jewish world. In the time of Jesus, people believed resurrection would happen at the end of history not in the middle of it. That is why the empty tomb and the appearances of the risen Jesus stunned even his closest followers. As the apostle Paul insists in 1 Corinthians 15, if Christ has not been raised, then Christian preaching and faith are meaningless.
The resurrection also reshapes Christian hope. Easter is not simply about life after death. It is about God’s promise of new creation. Just as God raised Jesus from the dead, God will one day raise his people and renew the whole world. The Christian hope is not escape from creation but the restoration of creation. Because resurrection is our future, what we do in the present matters. Our bodies matter. God’s creation matters. Easter proclaims that death has been defeated and that one day God will make all things new.
Books Mentioned
• The Resurrection of the Son of God — N. T. Wright • Surprised by Hope — N. T. Wright
Scriptures Mentioned
• John 11:23–24 • 1 Corinthians 15:12–14
Has Peaceable and Kind been meaningful to you? Support the show by:
Leaving a review
Giving us a 5-star rating on your podcast app
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Order Derek's new Bible Study Series, God in the Neighborhood: Book 1: Incarnation: 8 Lessons on How God Meets Us || https://amzn.to/42jSZAs Book 2: Crucifixion: 8 Lessons on How God Saves Us || https://amzn.to/459bNUk Book 3: Resurrection: 8 Lessons on How God Restores Us || https://amzn.to/40T0sp0
Learn more about Derek’s work as a pastor and author: https://derekvreeland.com
Interact with Derek on Instagram, Twitter, Bluesky, or Facebook
Episode 88: Aristotle to the Rescue
Episode 88
Thursday, February 5, 2026 • Duration 39:26
In this episode of Peaceable and Kind, Derek Vreeland continues the ongoing conversation about hypocrisy by turning toward a path of recovery. Rather than offering quick fixes or moralistic pressure, Derek invites listeners into a deeper vision of formation, one that reaches back into the ancient world for wisdom that still speaks today.
Drawing on Aristotle’s vision of ethics and virtue, and later Christian thinkers like Thomas Aquinas, this episode reframes ethics not as rule-keeping or performance, but as becoming the kind of people God intends us to be. Hypocrisy thrives on the disconnection between being and doing; virtue restores harmony through practiced faithfulness.
Aristotle isn’t our savior; Jesus is! But his wisdom can help Christians recover integrity, wholeness, and a life well lived.
Key Takeaways
Hypocrisy is not healed by effort alone, but by formation.
Salvation is a gift of grace, but grace is given for a way of life shaped by good works.
Aristotle’s ethics focus on becoming good, not merely doing right.
Virtue is a habit formed over time that aligns our inner life with our outward actions.
Practices shape character; character shapes desire.
Wholeness emerges when being and doing are brought back into harmony.
Books mentioned in this episode:
Nicomachean Ethics by Aristotle
From Aristotle to Christ by Louis Markos
Scriptures mentioned in this episode:
Ephesians 2:8–10
Has Peaceable and Kind been meaningful to you? Support the show by:
Leaving a review
Giving us a 5-star rating on your podcast app
Sharing this episode with a friend
Order Derek's new Bible Study Series, God in the Neighborhood:
Book 1: Incarnation: 8 Lessons on How God Meets Us || https://amzn.to/42jSZAs
Book 2: Crucifixion: 8 Lessons on How God Saves Us || https://amzn.to/459bNUk
Book 3: Resurrection: 8 Lessons on How God Restores Us || https://amzn.to/40T0sp0
Did you find this episode helpful on your spiritual journey? Consider helping us out!
Leave a review
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Give us a 5-Star rating on your podcast app of choice
Learn more about Derek’s work as a pastor and author: https://derekvreeland.com
Interact with Derek on Instagram, Twitter, Bluesky, or Facebook
Episode 87: Philip Yancy and the Problem of Hypocrisy
Season 1 · Episode 87
Thursday, January 29, 2026 • Duration 35:35
In this episode of Peaceable and Kind, Derek reflects on the devastating news surrounding Philip Yancey and what it reveals about the persistent problem of hypocrisy within the Christian life. Yancey’s writing shaped the faith of generations, helping many of us trust that grace is greater than sin. When news broke of his long-hidden moral failure, the response was not anger or judgment, but grief, lament, and a sober awareness of our shared human weakness.
Rather than throwing stones, this episode turns inward. Hypocrisy is not simply something “out there” among fallen leaders. It is a temptation that lives close to home. Following Jesus requires honest lament over our brokenness and a renewed pursuit of integrity rooted in virtue and the Spirit’s transforming work. The disconnect between our interior life and our public life, between being and doing, lies at the heart of the problem.
Sin is more than bad behavior; it is missing the mark and undermining who we were created to be as image-bearers of God. Hypocrisy emerges when we seek the rewards of discipleship without embracing the slow, humbling work of transformation. Jesus had little patience for religious performance, confronting outward righteousness that concealed inward decay.
The episode concludes with hope. If you recognize yourself in this struggle, you are not alone. You are not beyond repair. You may simply be a recovering hypocrite—and recovery is possible.
Key Insights
Hypocrisy is not struggling and failing; it is pretending without pursuing transformation.
Sin fractures the harmony between being and doing, making hypocrisy inevitable.
The root of hypocrisy is not merely theological but ontological, that is, a problem of being.
Christian formation requires virtue, humility, and dependence on the Spirit.
Recovery from hypocrisy begins with honest self-examination, repentance, and grace.
Books mentioned on this episode:
From Aristotle to Christ — Louis Markos
What’s So Amazing About Grace? — Philip Yancey
Scriptures mentioned on this episode
Mark 7:6–7
Matthew 23:27–28
Has Peaceable and Kind been meaningful to you? Support the show by:
Leaving a review
Giving us a 5-star rating on your podcast app
Sharing this episode with a friend
Order Derek's new Bible Study Series, God in the Neighborhood:
Book 1: Incarnation: 8 Lessons on How God Meets Us || https://amzn.to/42jSZAs
Book 2: Crucifixion: 8 Lessons on How God Saves Us || https://amzn.to/459bNUk
Book 3: Resurrection: 8 Lessons on How God Restores Us || https://amzn.to/40T0sp0
Did you find this episode helpful on your spiritual journey? Consider helping us out!
Leave a review
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Give us a 5-Star rating on your podcast app of choice
Learn more about Derek’s work as a pastor and author: https://derekvreeland.com
Interact with Derek on Instagram, Twitter, Bluesky, or Facebook
Episode 86: From Aristotle to Christ: A Conversation with Louis Markos
Season 1 · Episode 86
Thursday, January 22, 2026 • Duration 33:11
In this episode of Peaceable and Kind, Derek Vreeland invites listeners on a journey from ancient Athens to Jerusalem, exploring how Greek philosophy, especially Aristotle, has helped clarify Christian faith without ever replacing divine revelation. While reason must always remain subordinate to revelation, the wisdom of Athens can still serve the truth revealed in Christ.
Derek is joined by Louis Markos, Professor of English and Scholar in Residence at Houston Christian University and holder of the Robert H. Ray Chair in Humanities. A prolific author, speaker, and public intellectual, Markos has written over thirty books on topics ranging from classical literature and philosophy to C. S. Lewis, Tolkien, and Christian apologetics. His latest book, From Aristotle to Christ: How Aristotelian Thought Clarified the Christian Faith, is the third volume in a trilogy exploring how pagan philosophy prepared the way for Christian theology.
Their conversation focuses especially on Aristotle’s ethics, the nature of virtue, the role of habit in moral formation, and how Christians can affirm virtue without falling into works-righteousness. Together, Derek and Lou explore how Aristotle can help believers think clearly about goodness, character, and holiness in a morally confused age while keeping Jesus firmly at the center.
Key Highlights
Lou Markos’s journey into faith, philosophy, and literature
Aristotle’s understanding of virtue, goodness, and habit
The role of habit in forming character
The “self-reinforcing cycle” of virtue and habit
How Aristotle helps believers conform their souls to the image of Christ
Book mentioned in this episode: From Achilles to Christ: Why Christians Should Read the Pagan Classics by Louis Markos From Plato to Christ: How Platonic Thought Shaped the Christian Faith by Louis Markos From Aristotle to Christ: How Aristotelian Thought Clarified the Christian Faith by Louis Markos Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
Louis Markos’ Amazon page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B001JSBEBG?ingress=0&visitId=c43cc519-1ee8-4d84-b220-be3385b263bf&ref_=ap_rdr
Louis Markos’ YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1mcYKcQaJDA_a7sFVsHSgg
Has Peaceable and Kind been meaningful to you? Support the show by:
Leaving a review
Giving us a 5-star rating on your podcast app
Sharing this episode with a friend
Order Derek's new book, Incarnation: 8 Lessons on How God Meets Us, here: https://amzn.to/42jSZAs
Did you find this episode helpful on your spiritual journey? Consider helping us out!
Leave a review
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Give us a 5-Star rating on your podcast app of choice
Learn more about Derek’s work as a pastor and author: https://derekvreeland.com
Interact with Derek on Instagram, Twitter, Bluesky, or Facebook
Episode 85: Why I Started Reading Fiction Again
Season 1 · Episode 88
Thursday, January 15, 2026 • Duration 39:33
In this episode, Derek reflects on habits, formation, and why returning to the practice of reading fiction has renewed his imagination, faith, and understanding of the gospel.
Two weeks into the new year, Derek offers a word of grace for those who may already feel discouraged by abandoned New Year’s resolutions. God’s mercy is deeper than our resolve—and lasting change is formed through habits, not willpower. Drawing on the difference between resolutions and habits, Derek reminds us that habits shape who we are becoming, not just what we do.
From there, the episode turns to a personal shift: after years of reading almost exclusively non-fiction including theology, Scripture, and church history, Derek has returned to reading novels. Inspired by Eugene Peterson’s encouragement that pastors and Christians would be well-served to read fiction, Derek shares six reasons why it matters for people of faith including:
1. Scripture Is a Story
The Bible is not merely a collection of ideas but a unified narrative of creation, fall, redemption, and new creation. Fiction trains us to read Scripture as living story rather than disconnected facts.
2. The Gospel Is a Story
Good news is always narrated. Fiction helps us grasp narrative logic with beginnings, middles, and endings, so we can hear the gospel as something that has happened, not merely instructions to follow.
3. Stories Are Three-Dimensional
Fiction immerses us in character, motivation, struggle, and emotion, cultivating empathy and helping us understand the complexity of real human lives.
4. Stories Shape Discipleship
Like Jesus’ parables, stories invite transformation rather than mere information. Fiction allows us to see grace, forgiveness, courage, and repentance embodied in lived experience.
5. Everyone Has a Story
Human lives are narratives, not bullet points. Reading fiction trains us to listen well—to attend to nuance, pain, joy, and transformation in others.
6. The Gospel Is Best Shared Through Our Story
We proclaim the good news not only through explanation but through witness—by telling what God has done in our lives. Fiction helps us inhabit and tell stories that resonate with truth.
Derek concludes by reflecting on how reading fiction, most recently The Lord of the Rings, has rekindled his imagination and deepened his engagement with Scripture. Fiction doesn’t replace Bible reading; it enriches it, helping us see more clearly the living story God is telling in the world and in our lives.
The episode closes with a reading from The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien, reminding us that some of the deepest truths are carried not by arguments, but by stories.
Has Peaceable and Kind been meaningful to you? Support the show by:
• Leaving a review
• Giving us a 5-star rating on your podcast app
• Sharing this episode with a friend
Preorder Derek’s new books releasing February 17, 2026:
Crucifixion: 8 Lesson on How God Saves Us
Resurrection: 8 Lessons on how God Restores Us
Did you find this episode helpful on your spiritual journey? Consider helping us out!
• Leave a review
• Share it with your friends
• Give us a 5-Star rating on your podcast app of choice
Learn more about Derek’s work as a pastor and author: https://derekvreeland.com
Interact with Derek on Instagram, Twitter, Bluesky, or Facebook
Episode 84: Entering Into the Epiphany
Season 1 · Episode 84
Thursday, January 8, 2026 • Duration 31:37
In this episode, Derek reflects on the Christian season of Epiphany, a season centered on revelation, light, and clarity. Epiphany always falls on January 6, twelve days after Christmas, and reveals that Jesus is not only the Messiah of Israel, but the King of the nations, the Savior of the world.
Derek also acknowledges the painful weight January 6 carries in the United States, recalling the 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. He contrasts two kinds of “epiphanies” —one that reveals a kingdom of love, truth, and self-giving sacrifice, and another that revealed how rhetorical violence can turn into real violence. Epiphany, he reminds us, is clarifying. It reveals things as they are.
The episode then turns to the baptism of Jesus, the central Epiphany moment where God’s revolutionary kingdom is revealed. Drawing on Israel’s story, the Exodus, and the crossing of the Jordan, Derek shows how Jesus reenacts and fulfills Israel’s calling—not through conquest, but through love. In Jesus’ baptism, the Trinity is revealed, and we hear the words that define our identity before God: “You are my beloved.”
Epiphany, Derek says, prepares us for repentance by first grounding us in revelation by helping us see who Jesus truly is and who we are becoming in His light.
Key Insights
Epiphany celebrates the revelation of Jesus as Light of the World and King of the nations
January 6, 2021 was an epiphany revealing the danger of violent rhetoric
Epiphany shows that revelation is never neutral; light clarifies and exposes
Jesus’ baptism fulfills Israel’s story and reimagines power through love
The Jordan River connects Jesus to ancient Israel and God’s rescue plan
In Jesus, we receive our identity before we perform: beloved sons and daughters
Scripture Verses Mentioned in this Episode
Psalm 99:1–2
John 3:16
Matthew 3:13–17
Genesis 12
Has Peaceable and Kind been meaningful to you? Support the show by:
Leaving a review
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Order Derek's new book, Incarnation: 8 Lessons on How God Meets Us, here: https://amzn.to/42jSZAs
Did you find this episode helpful on your spiritual journey? Consider helping us out!
Leave a review
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Learn more about Derek’s work as a pastor and author: https://derekvreeland.com
Interact with Derek on Instagram, Twitter, Bluesky, or Facebook
Episode 83: Praying the Psalms
Season 1 · Episode 83
Thursday, January 1, 2026 • Duration 35:53
In this New Year’s Day episode, Derek kicks off 2026 by reflecting on the power of habits over resolutions. He describes a spiritual habit that has shaped his life for years: praying one psalm a day. This ancient practice formed Israel, Jesus, and the early church, and continues to form Christians today.
Derek shares how he first learned to pray the Psalms during a season of frustration as a young youth pastor, discovering that David’s battles with enemies gave him language to fight the interior enemies of his soul. Praying the Psalms taught him emotional honesty, resilience, and trust.
He then walks through five reasons to adopt this practice in 2026, emphasizing how the Psalms root us in an ancient community, embrace every human emotion, provide a language of prayer, and use powerful metaphors to connect the seen and unseen.
Highlights
Habits shape us more than resolutions.
Praying one psalm a day is a simple and transformative spiritual practice.
The Psalms root us in the ancient prayers of Israel—and of Jesus Himself.
They give voice to every human emotion, including anger, lament, and hope.
The Psalms teach us how to pray when we don’t know what to say.
Their metaphors help us encounter God in ordinary life.
Derek shares how praying Psalm 71 reshaped his early ministry by helping him confront inner enemies.
Resources
Psalm of the Day Chart: https://derekvreeland.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Psalm-for-the-day.pdf
Book mentioned in this episode: Answering God by Eugene Peterson
Scriptures mentioned in this episode Psalm 71, Psalm 23
Has Peaceable and Kind been meaningful to you? Support the show by:
Leaving a review
Giving us a 5-star rating on your podcast app
Sharing this episode with a friend
Order Derek's new book, Incarnation: 8 Lessons on How God Meets Us, here: https://amzn.to/42jSZAs
Did you find this episode helpful on your spiritual journey? Consider helping us out!
Leave a review
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Give us a 5-Star rating on your podcast app of choice
Learn more about Derek’s work as a pastor and author: https://derekvreeland.com
Interact with Derek on Instagram, Twitter, Bluesky, or Facebook
Episode 82: Daily Scripture Guidebook: A Conversation with Tim Wildsmith
Season 1 · Episode 82
Thursday, December 25, 2025 • Duration 37:17
In this special Christmas episode of Peaceable and Kind, Derek Vreeland celebrates the joy of the season and welcomes back the very first return guest in the podcast’s history: author, pastor, and Bible teacher Tim Wildsmith. Tim joins the podcast to talk about his brand-new book, Daily Scripture Guidebook: A 52-Week Journey Through the Bible.
Derek begins by reminding listeners that Christmas is a season—not just a single day. The twelve days of Christmas stretch all the way to Epiphany on January 6, and this is a time for feasting, joy, and gratitude. So grab your Christmas cookies and keep celebrating!
From there, Derek introduces Tim Wildsmith, well known for his popular YouTube Bible-review channel (now with over 266,000 subscribers), but also a gifted pastor, professor, musician, and thoughtful communicator. Tim currently serves as the Interim Pastor at Crievewood Baptist Church in Nashville, where he lives with his wife, Becca.
Tim first appeared back in Episode 45 to discuss his debut book Bible Translations for Everyone. Today he returns to share the heart, structure, and vision behind his new year-long guidebook for reading Scripture with depth, clarity, and joy.
Throughout the conversation, Derek and Tim explore how the Daily Scripture Guidebook helps readers move through the Bible at a sustainable pace, with weekly overviews, word studies, and space for journaling. They also talk about the emotional and spiritual challenges many people face when attempting to read the Bible consistently—and how Tim’s book (and companion podcast) aims to make daily Scripture engagement more meaningful and accessible.
Key Topics in This Episode
How a yearlong rhythm fosters consistency, formation, and daily time with Jesus
Helping readers overcome common Bible-reading struggles
Navigating both Old and New Testaments
Building a habit of reflection and journaling
Introducing the companion podcast: “Daily Scripture with Tim Wildsmith”
Books Mentioned in This Episode
Daily Scripture Guidebook: A 52-Week Journey Through the Bible by Tim Wildsmith
Bible Translations for Everyone by Tim Wildsmith
The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language by Eugene Peterson
Has Peaceable and Kind been meaningful to you? Support the show by:
Leaving a review
Giving us a 5-star rating on your podcast app
Sharing this episode with a friend
Order Derek's new book, Incarnation: 8 Lessons on How God Meets Us, here: https://amzn.to/42jSZAs
Did you find this episode helpful on your spiritual journey? Consider helping us out!
Leave a review
Share it with your friends
Give us a 5-Star rating on your podcast app of choice
Learn more about Derek’s work as a pastor and author: https://derekvreeland.com
Interact with Derek on Instagram, Twitter, Bluesky, or Facebook
Episode 81: Entering Into Narnia — The Awe and Wonder of Christmas
Friday, December 19, 2025 • Duration 33:04
In this episode of Peaceable and Kind, Derek Vreeland invites listeners to recover the awe, imagination, and wonder of Christmas by stepping through the wardrobe into the world of Narnia. As we approach the fourth Sunday of Advent and draw near to Christmas, Derek reflects on how C. S. Lewis helps us see the Christmas story with fresh eyes, through imagination, metaphor, and childlike faith.
Drawing from Lewis’s works, Derek explains why imagination is essential for understanding the deeper meaning of Christmas. “Reason is the organ of truth,” Lewis wrote, “but imagination is the organ of meaning.” Before truth can be grasped, it must mean something and meaning is carried through images, metaphors, and stories.
Through Lucy’s first steps into Narnia, Derek explores our shared longing for another world, one marked by beauty and mystery. This longing, Lewis argues, is a signpost pointing us toward God. And in Jesus’ incarnation, God has given us a doorway, a “wardrobe,” into that greater world. Jesus is the gate, the portal through which we enter the life of God.
Advent is the season where wonder can be reborn in us. Aslan is on the move. Winter will not last forever. And Christmas is the invitation to step inside.
Key Takeaways
Imagination is essential for meaning. Lewis teaches that before truth can be recognized, it must be imagined.
Christmas awakens our longing for another world. Our desire for is itself a clue that we were made for more.
Jesus is our wardrobe. In his incarnation, Jesus becomes the doorway into God’s life: “I am the gate… whoever enters by me will be saved” (John 10:7–9).
Narnia mirrors our world under winter’s spell. Seasons of spiritual coldness, absence, and longing echo Narnia’s “always winter and never Christmas.” But Aslan’s arrival (like the arrival of Jesus on Christmas Day) signals restoration and joy.
Childlike faith opens us to the kingdom. Curiosity, wonder, and openness are not childish. They are the way Jesus teaches us to enter God’s world.
Four Simple Ways to Step Through the Wardrobe This Advent
Slow down enough to notice beauty. Wonder needs space; beauty is everywhere if we have eyes to see.
Read aloud. Hearing awakens imagination in a way silent reading doesn’t.
Welcome small acts of delight. Do little things during Advent and Christmas that bring you joy.
Sit with mystery. Resist the urge to explain everything. Let some things remain holy and hidden.
Scriptures Mentioned in This Episode:
John 10:7–9
Books and Essays Mentioned in This Episode
C. S. Lewis, “Bluspels and Flalansferes: A Semantic Nightmare” Selected Literary Essays (1969)
Read this essay online here: https://ourendgame.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/BluspelsAndFlalansferes.pdf
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis
Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis
Has Peaceable and Kind been meaningful to you? Support the show by:
Leaving a review
Giving us a 5-star rating on your podcast app
Sharing this episode with a friend
Order Derek's new book, Incarnation: 8 Lessons on How God Meets Us, here: https://amzn.to/42jSZAs
Did you find this episode helpful on your spiritual journey? Consider helping us out!
Leave a review
Share it with your friends
Give us a 5-Star rating on your podcast app of choice
Learn more about Derek’s work as a pastor and author: https://derekvreeland.com
Interact with Derek on Instagram, Twitter, Bluesky, or Facebook