Seeds For Thinking

Link: http://seedsforthinking.oldgleaner.com/

Scripture: “A little later some of the other bystanders came over to Peter and said, ‘You must be one of them; we can tell by your Galilean accent.’" (Matthew 26:73, New Living Translation) See also; Mark 14:70, Luke 22:59

All the apostles, with the exception of Judas Iscariot (Acts 1:11), were Galileans, an inhabitant or native of Galilee. This word was used as a name of contempt as applied to our Lord's disciples (Luke 22:59; Acts 2:7). Peter was detected by his Galilean accent (Matthew 26:69; Mark 14:70).
Jesus and His disciples apparently had a distinctive mode of pronunciation of the Aramaic language, defined as “a distinct emphasis given to syllables or words in speech by stress or pitch, pronunciation, intonation, enunciation, articulation, inflection, tone, modulation, cadence, timbre, manner of speaking, delivery; brogue, burr, drawl, twang.” (Whew!) For example, perhaps you have heard a Bronx accent, or southern accent.
They quite possibly sprinkled their speech with words that are considered to be a dialect: a particular form of a language that is peculiar to a specific region or social group. Let’s take a look at some common words that are found in different regions of the United States.
What do you use to carry your school supplies, lunch or groceries? Depending on where you live, you might use a sack, bag, pouch, pack, satchel; knapsack, backpack, rucksack, packsack, day pack, bookbag, or a tote bag. Sack and poke were both originally regional terms for bag. Sack has since become a Standard term like bag, but poke remains regional, mainly in South Midland Regional dialect. Ever hear of a pig in a poke?
Maybe you grew up transporting grains, potatoes, and other agricultural products in a burlap bag, AKA gunny sack, an inexpensive bag made of burlap. Gunny comes from the Sanskrit word gon, meaning "jute or hemp fiber, from which they are usually made, although modern sacks are often made from polypropylene. Also regionally called crocus sack, croker sack, tow bag, or tow sack, a gunny sack holds approximately 100 pounds of potatoes. Gunny sacks are also popular in the traditional children's game of sack races.
To make things even more interesting, “sack” has numerous other meanings, including a loose, unfitted, or shapeless garment (a sack dress), in particular a woman's loose gown; sack out - go to sleep or bed; be sacked - dismissed from employment; in football, tackling (sack) a quarterback behind the line of scrimmage before he can throw a pass; in baseball, a base; in historical contexts, the pillaging of a town or city - plunder and destroy a captured town, building, or other place, perhaps originally referred to filling a sack with plunder.
If your lingo runs more to bags than sacks, consider this: a bag can be a loose fold of skin under a person's eye; "The bags under his eyes gave him a sad appearance"; or,
She began to unpack her - bags, suitcase, case, valise, portmanteau, grip, overnighter; backpack, rucksack, knapsack, haversack, carryall, kit bag, duffel bag; satchel; (bags) luggage, baggage.
As a verb, you might bag, catch, land, capture, trap, snare, ensnare, kill, or shoot fish or game. Maybe he bagged - got, secured, obtained, acquired, picked up; won, achieved, attained; commandeered, grabbed, appropriated, or took - seven medals.
You might brown-bag your lunch, use a sack, a lunch box or dinner pail to tote that submarine sandwich, or depending on where you live, you could call the same sandwich a “hero”, “hoagie” or “grinder.”
And the words you use just might tell others where you live.

Seeds for Thinking (©) 1996 - 2011 by Leland Hubbell

Link: http://seedsforthinking.oldgleaner.com/

* To See Ourselves
* Scripture: Jesus said, "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned?" Matthew 5:13, NKJB

I have yet to see a coin that didn't have two sides. Sides that are different, just like most arguments and opinions.
Both sides of a coin represent the same value; not so with arguments and opinions.
The Scottish poet, Robert Burns, wrote a little verse:
"O would the gift the giver give (gie) us,
To see ourselves as others see us."

It is said that he conceived the ditty while sitting in church behind a lady all decked out in her Sunday finery, complete with a hat with a large feather on it, and watched as a louse crawled up her neck.
Ah! To see ourselves as we truly are - that would indeed be a gift from the Giver above. That's one side of the coin. Not only to see, but to possess the tact and fortitude to handle the truth, whether about ourselves, or about others.
The other side of the coin is truly to be able to see ourselves as we ARE, but NOT as others see us! Perhaps you have been told, as a youth undergoing teasing and name calling, that,

"Sticks and stones may break my (your) bones,
But words will never hurt me."

In all truth, words can cut deeper than any two-edged sword! Words can leave wounds that do not heal over time, as most physical bruises do. Harsh 'put-down' words can be like pouring salt into an open wound.
Think about a plant, any plant, a growing thing. We can readily see what is above ground; the stem, stalk or trunk, and the leaves, reaching up to the beneficial rays of the sun. The health of the plant depends even more critically upon the root system, however, the unseen network through which the plant is nourished. Damage to that system threatens the well-being of the rest of the plant. Salt is good, in the right place, but not on most root systems, the other side of the coin, so to speak.
A person's psyche - soul, self, mind - is like that plant's root system, not visible like the physical body, but ever so vital in the wellness and wholeness of the person. How easily can that psyche be damaged by ridicule and words that cut and rend asunder a person's self image.
We can relate how people went on to achieve great things in spite of criticism to the effect that they were dumb, and would never amount to anything, people like Thomas Edison and Albert Einstein. They are an inspiration, surely, but how many more Edisons and Einsteins would there have been - would there be - had their spark not been quenched by the cold water of ridicule and scorn.
The music and comedy act, The Smothers Brothers, got great milage from the line, "Mother always liked you best." Why? I think because it touches a tender spot with so many people.
We are vulnerable, each one of us, to wounding by words. The remedy is not in retaliation, but in lifting up, encouraging, comforting. We are called to be the 'seasoning' of the earth, not the salt poured into opened wounds. Salt, true, but different sides of the same coin.
This week, try to be the encourager, the enabler, the good 'seasoner' in someone's life. In doing so, you will not only lift up their life, but your own, as well.
April 2, 2006

Link: http://seedsforthinking.oldgleaner.com/

Scripture: “And the disciples were first called Christians at Antioch.”
(Acts 11:26b, NKJV)

The eerie, wailing, screeching sound woke me at a pre-dawn hour. This banshee-like scream was accompanied by a strange glow in the sky, punctuated by flashes of lightning and rumbles of thunder. This was neither a summer thunderstorm, nor a howling hurricane, but a January snow storm in central Ohio. I was witnessing the arrival of what has come to be known as the “Great Blizzard of 1978.”
The rapidly intensifying storm pulled bitterly cold air across Ohio on winds of 50 to 70 mph. Rain turned to ice and snow as the temperature plunged 21 degrees — from 34 to 13 — between 5 and 6 a.m. Temperatures hovered around zero but the wind chill made it feel like 60 below. Atmospheric pressure fell to 28.28 inches at Cleveland, the lowest ever recorded in Ohio.
This storm met all of the criteria for a true blizzard, as defined by the National Weather Service: Sustained winds or frequent gusts of 35 mph or greater, considerable falling and/or blowing snow reducing visibility frequently to 1/4 mile or less for a period of three hours or more.
The term “blizzard” is often applied to any snowfall amount, disregarding the wind and time factors, and is thus not a correct use of the word.
Clarity in communication depends upon the selection of the proper descriptive word. “Say what you mean, and mean what you say.” But what, exactly, does it mean if someone writes, “The windstorm decimated the forest”? Surely you know what a decimal is, or one tenth of something. A decade is from the Latin word for ‘ten.’ The verb decimate originally alluded to the Roman punishment of executing one man in ten of a mutinous legion. Was the legion utterly destroyed? No. Did the writer mean that only one tenth of the forest was destroyed? Who knows?
“Plethora” is a word that I find to be irritating in many uses. This word refers (and has always referred) to an overabundance, an overfullness, or an excess. The phrase “a plethora of” is essentially a highfalutin equivalent of too many.
Unfortunately, through misunderstanding of the word's true sense, many writers use it as if it were equivalent to plenty or many. So what does it mean to read, “There is a plethora of apples this year?“ The writer could have meant “many,” or “There is an over abundance; way too many apples.” Who knows?
When we go into a store, and see the words ‘Good’, ‘Better’, ‘Best’, on products, we form an opinion about the quality and resulting price. Most folks would be very upset if the merchant labeled the cheapest, lowest quality product as “The Best.” So why should we accept sloppy, inaccurate uses of words?
Consider the word, “Christian.” It should refer to one who’s life is manifested toward God and Christ, filled with and guided by the Holy Spirit. Christians should be known by their “fruitfulness” in internal graces: kindness, humility, gentleness, love, self control, and peacefulness. The Christ-like person should exemplify Christ in all aspects of their life, as befits an “heir of God, and joint heir with Christ.” (Romans 8:17)
Unfortunately, some toss the word “Christian” about as casually as they do words like blizzard, decimate, and plethora, disregarding the true meaning of “Like Christ.” ‘Christian’ is sometimes used as a default word to label a person who is not a believer of some other religion, or who lives in a predominately Christian country or region, regardless of their relationship to Christ.
May we who call ourselves ‘Christian’ exemplify Christ in all aspects of our lives, even as the disciples of the Church at Antioch.
February 14, 2010

Link: http://seedsforthinking.oldgleaner.com/

* Good Intentions
* Scripture: James wrote, “Faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” (James 2:17)
Paul wrote, “ . . . walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.” (Colossians 1:10 ) - NKJV

Oh, the mistakes I’ve made! I first learned that I had a special talent for this fine art of mistake making many years ago. There I sat, and all about me was the rapid-fire din of ‘clickety-clickety-clickety.’ I was producing more of a ‘clunk-clunk,’ but it was the mistakes more than the lack of speed that brought me down. It haunts me still.
I will not give up; I will persevere! Besides, I have to chuckle sometimes at the new words that I create as I type. For example, the letter ‘i’ is just one key to the right of the letter ‘u’ on the keyboard. So what if I transpose only one little key? After all, Sinday is almost Sunday, give or take a letter, and one wrong out of six isn’t so bad, now is it? My good intentions should count for something.
Still, good intentions didn’t help me one bit in that long ago typing class. I had to suffer the consequences, regardless. No, there are times when good intentions just don’t cut it.
It hath oft been quoted that the pathway to the ‘nether regions’ is paved with good intentions. So I suppose that I should do as I have done for decades now - back up, correct mistakes like Sinday, and run the trusty ol’ spell-checker on the computer. Spell checkers are not infallible, though. For example, although it caught my ‘Sinday’ typo, I am given spellings of ‘Sidney,‘ ‘Cindy,’ and even ‘cindery’ but not Sunday.
I also know that if I do the same ’i’ for ‘u’ letter substitution and write ‘bit’ when I meant ‘but,’ the spell-checker is perfectly happy. I could let it go at that, bit (but) it will not catch grammatical or contextual errors. Words need to be more than just ‘correct;’ they must have purpose to be useful.
Consider that I could put together a list of words at random, run the spell checker, and find them all correct. To what purpose? There would be no message, no thoughts communicated. It would be like a tree with lots of leaves, good leaves, but no fruit. ( See Mt. 21:18, 19)
Jesus wants us to be more than “good leaves.” He wants us to be “fruitful.” To have a purpose in His Kingdom. To do more than have ‘good intentions’ and merely wave gently in the breezes of life.
Though I have abundant faith in my spell checker, I must go beyond correct spelling alone if I wish to write something of worth and meaning.
So, too, I am called to be more than a “good man,” of correct moral character. That is commendable, but of itself is like leaves on a barren tree. I must bud, bloom, be pollinated by the Gospel, and become fruitful in every good work. I must associate with the Lord, to share in His works, to increase in the knowledge of Him.
July 31, 2005

Link: http://seedsforthinking.oldgleaner.com/

Scripture: Adam said,
“I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked, and I hid myself.” Genesis 3:10, NKJV

Perhaps you have heard the maxim, as I have:
“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.”
In theory, the thought is supposed to help us shrug off taunts and name calling. In theory! In fact, words can wound deeper than a sharp blade, can bruise greater than a cudgel.
The injury from a rear-ender car collision often produces “whip lash,” a stressing of the neck, which may leave no visible external evidence, but may cause severe internal damage.
We have only to follow news reports to witness the result of “word lash,” which can also create severe internal damage, psychological damage that sometimes comes out in violent confrontations, perhaps resulting in the death of several people.
More often, though, people ‘hide’ themselves by building a shield - a psychological shield - and hide within it. Henry David Thoreau observed in "Walden", 1854 “The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.” He also noted: “Public opinion is a weak tyrant compared with our own private opinion. What a man thinks of himself, that is which determines, or rather indicates, his fate.“
It is not just cruel, hateful words that can bring us to destruction, however. Sometimes seemingly innocent words of advice, craftily proffered, can bring down the gullible, or even the diligent soul who seeks to walk in the paths of righteousness. Adam and Eve knew well God’s words concerning the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the garden. “You shall not eat (of it) for in the day that you eat of it, you shall surely die.” (Genesis 2:17) Words can not be much plainer than that!
Yet note the words of the cunning serpent: “You will not surely die. . . . You will be like God.” Sweet talk, craftily proffered. And they ate.
In Genesis 3:11 God asks Adam, “Who told you that you were naked?” But this is more than an issue about a lack of clothing. This was something new, an awareness of a vulnerability, a sense of the loss of innocence. Previously, Adam and Eve had nothing to hide from God; they had nothing to be ashamed of. Now, the knowledge of their disobedience envelops them. God knows! His words concerning the tree in the midst of the garden rang in their conscience, weighing heavily and guiltily on their minds. Adam thinks of himself as not only guilty, but as naked before God.
Guilty! They have sinned against the Word of God. Too late. Excuses will not build a shield to hide behind. The serpent (Satan), the woman, and Adam all sinned, and all were punished. Yes, it was God’s Word, and not Satan’s words, that prevailed.
Yet, “For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam, all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. (1 Corinthians 15:21-22, NKJV)

Link: http://seedsforthinking.oldgleaner.com/

Scripture: John 11: 35,
“Jesus wept.”
More than just words!
Writing is a “Johnny-come-lately” in the realm of human communication. A baby can make a good many intentions known without writing, or even speaking words. Any parent who has raised a teenager knows the words, “OK, I’m going” can have several meanings beyond what I have just applied to paper. You have no clue to whether the above-mentioned person said those words in a cheerful way, grudgingly, or full-bore angry. Not unless I add a description of attitude, tone of voice, or other actions.
One interesting activity for a speech class is to have several students take turns saying the words, “I’m going to school.” You can make it sound cheerful, sad, condescending, determined, etc. Try it; or say “I’m going to Church.” How many different feelings can you put into it?
If you use the internet for communications, you often see little hints as to feeling; the most popular are called ‘mood smilies.’ Such as - or or ( . . . You also see (grin) for something said in humor. It helps to know the mood of the writer. Was the person serious, or was it said tongue-in-cheek?
Yes, written communication fails to capture the full expression of spoken language. Take time to read the story of the death and resurrection of Lazarus, in John, chapter 11. Compare Martha’s first words to Jesus in verse 21 with Mary’s in verse 32. Both said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” Do you get any clues as to the way the sisters may have differed in expressing the (same) words? How did Martha walk as she went out? The Bible tells us Mary “went quickly” to where Jesus was. Martha seems like the composed, reserved person who “served” Jesus in Chapter 11:2. Mary went weeping, and fell at Jesus’ feet. Jesus was touched by her tears, and those of the friends and neighbors who followed her. “Jesus wept.”- John 11:35
When we pray, even the ‘Lord’s Prayer’, are we flat, emotionless, like plain words on paper, or do we pray like Mary - words that can release emotions?
January 21, 2001