Packaged in an interesting and engaging format, The Screwtape Letters is an effective rebuttal of the division of sacred and secular. Wherever we may be in your walk with God, Lewis’ book helps believers to think deeply about their everyday lives, and to spot the spiritual temptations that present themselves in seemingly small decisions. 

Everyday Warfare in “The Screwtape Letters”

In the increasingly secular west, we are constantly tempted to compartmentalise the Christian faith. The so-called “spiritual” components of our lives are limited to church on Sundays, quiet times, and the occasional moments of self-reflection. But when it comes to our everyday interactions, we often think there are few spiritual stakes at all.

In reality, life under Christ means everything is a matter of godliness – even down to our eating and drinking (1 Corinthians 10:31). As Abraham Kuyper states: “there is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, Mine!” Our everyday lives are not just flesh and blood, but spiritual battlegrounds against the powers and forces of this world (Ephesians 6:12).

This is precisely the point that C.S. Lewis makes in his book, The Screwtape Letters. Through depicting fictional letters between a senior devil (Screwtape) and his nephew (Wormwood), Lewis highlights the real spiritual warfare behind the everyday circumstances of the believer. Lewis’ satirical edge ensures his words cut to the heart, spotlighting battlegrounds about which we might otherwise be ignorant. Here are just two standouts from my own reading of this book.

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