The more we believe that God hurts only to heal, the less we can believe that there is any use in begging for tenderness A cruel man might be bribed - might grow tired of his vile sport - might have a temporary fit of mercy, as alcoholics have fits of sobriety. But suppose that what you are up against is a surgeon whose intentions are wholly good. The kinder and more conscientious he is, the more inexorably he will go on cutting. If he yielded to your entreaties, if he stopped before the operation was complete, all the pain up to that point would have been useless…
What do people mean when they say ‘I am not afraid of God because He is good?’ Have they never been to a dentist?
~ A Grief Observed
CS Lewis
