My dearest Wormwood,

It pleases me to hear that you have so infiltrated his dreams. Dreams are fertile soil for our Master. Though be careful, our Enemy is close by to use them for his own purposes. Dreams are a great tool because it's easy to make your client think they're totally separate from himself because it's not "who he really is." Keep drawing things out from his subconscious; that way he won't think twice about them being there. Keep flashing those images periodically into his mind throughout the day; that way tomorrow night will be even easier to capture.

From what you've told me in the past, he seems to think he is chosen above his peers by our Enemy. Whoever filled your position before you did good to keep this at the forefront of his mind by putting it at the back of his mind. Most who are imaginative are easy targets in this area because they either tend toward self-confidence or toward self-depreciation. Find out which is which for your client. It will most likely be different depending on the situation. If they are so set on this idea that they are chosen, their evil habits are much less of a concern to them. They think them in no way forfeiting of their relationship to our Enemy, but merely minor flaws in a perfectly fine. What they don't realize is that it's the little things that are far more able to seal them for our Master than the big things.

He will tend to want extra praise for his goods and more immediate grace for his wrongs. When he feels the weight of all the things he's done on his conscience (that persistent invention placed in him by our Enemy), tell him that it's that kind of suffering our Enemy uses for his good. Every time he feels in his conscience he should do something he shrugs it off and thinks it okay that he put it off until later because he's way further along than those he's surrounds himself with. On the other side, his specialness will send him into deep despair for having done wrong when our Enemy convicts him. Do you see the value of this quality yet? It's made your job easy. His own feeling that he is special will keep Him from actually seeking our Enemy, as well as making Him think our Enemy is so far from him when he may actually be nearer than ever.

Now I remember you saying that there have been several moments when our Enemy has intervened and gone outside His normal means to show your client that He is with him. This is dangerous, but you can also easily use it for your good. Let me tell you. Now that he has seen that our Enemy can speak in those ways, he will want to see it more and more. Keep putting it in his mind to look for him in unconventional ways. Instead of running to his fellowship worshipper for help, he will go looking for a sign and leave feeling more isolated than before. Plus, he still believes that he's more important than his friends so he wouldn't feel the need to come to them when a sign from our Enemy is readily available in his mind. Equate our Enemy's physical signs with his presence. We've seen many clients wander into deep darkness this way, not realizing that our Enemy wants obedience not a sign seekers.

A few letters back you told me that your client nearly drowned when he was young. This is as good for us as it is for our Enemy. But be careful, our Enemy can quickly bring to his thoughts that it wasn't him at all who preserved his life. Let your client believe that he was made for more than to serve his Maker. He will spend all his time chasing a blurry dream rather than seeking consistent obedience to the one who saved him in the first place. We would've much rather seen him die as a boy, but the Enemy preserved him. This doesn't mean he is safe from being destroyed once and for all.

I am most proud, dear Wormwood, for it sounds like your client believes your voice to be much closer to the voice of our Enemy than he realizes. Keep him thinking he is more important than his brothers around him. Even Cain was a little proud of the mark he wore from God, though it was a mark of murder and shame. How easily fooled they are.

Whatever you do, don't let him relinquish his opinions of himself. They are the only thing that stand between him and our Enemy. Keep sending him to his knees in prayer (though even doing away with that would be good), but our Lord forbid that he reach out for help outside of himself. In a moment, all the work of constructing his ideas about his choseness will cave in. Remember that he was actually chosen by our Enemy. That is the danger. Only make him believe it was for something else than to serve him.

Screwtape