Monday, October 1, 2012

Choosing the Right Language


If you haven’t noticed lately our cultural and technical language has changed.  Once upon a time the word “gay” was used when describing a sense of joy but it means something totally different now. Our children instead of saying, “I’m sorry” now say “my bad.”  Or when referring to a good thing they will say “that’s bad.”  A knife is called a “shank” and the greeting “Hi what’s going on” is now “Wassup.”  Even worse, in the technical realm words have become mere abbreviations.  OMG is “O my god,” ILY is “I Love You,” and OMW is “On my way.”  Back a few weeks ago I came to grips with my ignorance of this new language.  People both male and female started sending me messages signed LOL. My naïve translation of these letters led me to conclude they meant “Lots of Love.” While rewarding myself for figuring out the code, this interpretation left me feeling a bit uncomfortable. I wanted to reply out of courtesy but using these letters as a closing signature just didn’t feel right. Now I know I’m a lovable guy but what if the female on the receiving end of the email or text misunderstands the intent of the message.  Even greater was my concern of responding to a man with this terminology.  Maybe it’s all me but that just doesn’t seem very manly.  Needless to say I felt ignorance being rubbed all over me when I learned the letters actually mean “Laugh out Loud.” That mistake caused me to reflect and rejoice over the language God uses.  He speaks neither in slang words or abbreviations. He says what He means and means what He says with clarity. What is His message to us? “I love you with an everlasting love; Call unto me and I will answer; I will never leave you nor forsake you; Trust me and lean not to your own understanding.”  If you are like me you realize you don’t have to be the sharpest person in the room. All you need to know is when God speaks He always chooses the right language.   

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