Rehearsals

Rehearsals

Terry had serious throat cancer. He was pastoring a small church in rural Montana. As part of the community of people who loved him, we prayed hard and fasted long. We encouraged him and his family in every way we knew how. One by one, medical answers came up empty. Still throughout his illness we sought God’s healing power.

But Terry died anyway. He was only 39.

I cried a flood tears. My heart broke for his family. But honestly—some tears revealed my disappointment with God. Why would He take such a wonderful man? We needed Terry here. God is able to heal—but in this case, He didn’t. I asked God for understanding. Over the course of Terry’s decline I saw four dramatic symbolic pictures. In the wake of Terry’s death, God made sense of them.Continue reading

Playing Scrabble With God

Playing Scrabble With God

Almost, Later, Better, Already. We say these words all the time, but to a three-year-old they have complex meanings. As language forms in a child’s brain, how do these kinds of nuances develop?

In reference to a stoplight, my three-year-old granddaughter said, “Yellow means it’s almost time to stop.”

In her longing for warm weather she said, “We can run through the sprinkler later, when the snow is gone.”

Toddler girl playing tea party with a dollAfter I suggested several ideas for lunch she said, “I have a better idea.” She wanted to have a tea party.

When saying goodbye after a fun day of play she said, “I miss you already.”

The mystery of language has always fascinated me, particularly the progression from concrete thoughts to abstract ideas.

Linguists for many decades believed that our “mother tongues” held us captive. If you grew up in an equatorial climate, your language might not include a word for snow. Would that limit your belief that snow existed at all? Probably not. One can imagine the idea of snow by looking at photos in a National Geographic.

Asian winter fashion man in snow mountain landscape. Wearing white hoody sweater with furry hat and gloves.On the other hand, if you were an Eskimo you’d have over fifty words to describe snow. You’d understand the difference between wet snow, powdered snow, crystalline snow, falling snow, fallen snow, snow that’s been on the ground for a week, not to mention sea ice, which is altogether different. Snow would be your world, and so you’d know its many facets and forms.

But what if there was no word for “grace” in your language. Would it be inconceivable? Would it affect how you dealt with offenses? Would there be alienation in relationships? Could you understand the centerpiece of Christianity?

In the late 1700s, Moravian missionaries arrived in northern Canada and discovered that the Inuit Eskimos had no word for “forgiveness” in their vocabulary. How could the Moravians explain such an profound idea to this people group?

Hands reaching for the skyThe missionaries ended up creating a phrase for the concept of forgiveness—ISSU-MAGIJOU-JUNG-NAINER-MIK. This odd sequence of words meant: “Not being able to think about it any more.” They formed an association between “forgive” and “forget” using Jeremiah 31:34— “I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” Thus the Eskimos grasped the meaning of the Cross and reconciliation with God.

Abstract meanings form because known words build upon other known words. And so people from different cultures can communicate.

IbiliBut language evolves, and maintaining connection with others requires constant learning. If you’ve ever felt left out in a conversation between teenagers, you know what I mean. Words like bromance, chillax, hashtag, and selfie are among 5,000 “millennial generation” words  recently added to the fifth edition of the Official Scrabble Players Dictionary, published by Merriam-Webster.

If we aren’t growing in language and communication, relationships suffer. And so it is with God.Continue reading

Life Rings

Life Rings

She firmly held a flaming torch. I could not see her face. Her head was hidden in a low cloud cover. But she had lowered her arm so the light would still shine.

Statue of LibertyI saw this image of the Statue of Liberty during a prayer time. A small group of my friends had gathered to ask God for encouragement, instruction or discernment. We spent time listening for single words, phrases, a symbolic picture, an impression, a Scripture brought to remembrance…there are many ways that God speaks.

Seeing the iconic effigy of freedom that way was curious. I pondered it for a while. Her head could symbolize our human minds—even our best thinking can get clouded. But her torch, the divine spark of freedom and equality, had not gone out though our country is experiencing difficult times.

BonoBono of U2 admonished students at Georgetown University to keep faith with the idea of America…“One of the greatest ideas of human history, right up there with the Renaissance. Right up there with crop rotation or the Beatles’ White Album.” He wasn’t really joking. He spoke reverently about the idea of equality, justice, the pursuit of happiness, and dignity. USA Constitution Parchment“This country,” he said, “was the first to claw its way out of darkness and put that on paper.” And I believe it was a God-given idea.

There is no other explanation.

So why would God show me an altered image of the Statue of Liberty compared to its present victorious stance on Ellis Island? Continue reading