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 

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