Short Blog: Thoughts on The Screwtape Letters

I recently read a book called The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis.  The central story is that Screwtape is writing to his nephew on how to deceive his "Patient", an Englishman who just recently became a Christian (chapter 2).  At the end, the Englishman dies due to the Germans air raids on England during World War II and gone to heaven.  The letters go through different stages of the Englishman's life: conversion, finding a church, relationship with his mother who lives with him, having a girlfriend, and then his eventual death at the end of the book.

Some thoughts:

1. Although this is a must-read book for some Christians, I always find reading Lewis's books a little difficult.  I struggled with Mere Christianity, but not as much as Screwtape.  I think Mere Christianity, I knew that it was a transcription of his radio program, so much of the book was his babbling on radio.  But dwindle down to the core of Mere Christianity, I understood the overall message of the book.  But Screwtape was a written work of fiction, and there is much babbling which sort of distracts from the central message of the book.
2. Speaking of, what is the message of the book?  If you read chapter 2 (or round abouts), you see that this "Patient" has become a Christian.  But throughout the book, Screwtape writes to Wormwood on how to manipulate his mind, to get him to denounce his faith and fall back to sin.  Taking a step back, does C.S. Lewis suggest that one can lose their salvation?  Or that no matter what the devils do to Christians, Christians will always have a place in heaven, and that God's love prevails, and faith will ultimately overcome temptation?  
3. Towards the end of the book, you read that World War II is happening in Europe and the Germans has started to attack England.  One of the things I find interesting is that Screwtape is asking Wormwood to do all that he can to keep the Patient alive.  If the very act of war has started with evil and Satan (which Screwtape called him "Father" in the book; God was referred to as the "Enemy"), why would Screwtape want the Patient to remain alive?  Or maybe Screwtape doesn't know no matter what he and Wormwood do to the Patient, the Patient will go to heaven no matter what?