November 2, 2009

What's In a Word

Once upon a time, a donkey found a lion's skin. He tried it on, strutted around, and frightened many animals. Soon a fox came along, and the donkey tried to scare him, too. But the fox, hearing the donkey's voice, said, "If you want to terrify me, you'll have to disguise your bray." The moral of this Aesop fable: Clothes may disguise a fool, but his words will give him away.

It is true, our words reveal more about us than we desire. Often it is the volume of our words that diminish their significance. Someone has said, “Blessed are they who have nothing to say, and who cannot be persuaded to say it.”

Or to put it poetically:
A wise old owl lived in an oak.
The more he heard, the less he spoke.
The less he spoke, the more he heard.
Why can't we all be like the wise old bird?

But of course there are times when we have to speak to be understood. If the words are chosen carefully, the intended message is properly communicated. There are occasions when the wrong choice of words hinders effective communication.

New words creep into our vocabulary. Words that are FULL of meaning and convey more than themselves. “Google” is one of those recent additions. Unless you been on a remote island for several years you know that “Google” is a search engine (there’s another new term) on the internet that can provide more information than you will need in several life times.

It has not been long ago that you watched television programs at the time they were broadcast. But not anymore. You can now “Tivo” them by using a DVR (another fairly new term) and then watch them on your own schedule.

I wonder how long it will be before Google and Tivo will go the way of Jell-O and Xerox. It seems like it was only yesterday that those words were used for any gelatin dessert and anytime you copied a document. But their meaning has been lost as brand names have expanded.

Words in any language can communicate effectively but if they are over-used they can become meaningless. Or they can become obsolete. And there is always the danger of using words that have meaning only for “insiders.”

Do we use words that no longer communicate the truth and principles of the Gospel? Salvation, grace, forgiveness, and redemption are relevant and important concepts for people today. We certainly do not need to abandon the task of telling people that God loves them and Jesus came to save them. Do we need new terminology? Are there different expressions that carry the same meaning? The Message is the same but do we need different methods and words?

Jamie Jenkins
jjenkins@ngumc.org

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Housing Needed for Flood Response Teams
There is a pressing need for housing for work teams on the west side of Atlanta. More than 100 teams from outside our Conference are planning trips to North Georgia to rebuild and repair homes and buildings that were flooded in September. The teams have 6 to 8 members on average, but some have as many as 14 to 30. Their needs include a place to sleep, as well as a place to cook or volunteers to prepare meals. Many teams work for 5 to 6 days, but one group may be here for as long as two months. To discuss housing opportunities, please call the Flood Response Call Center at 678.533.1443.

Clergy E-mail Targeted by Phishing Scam
Please do not reply to an e-mail requesting account information sent to clergy "ngumc.net" accounts. This is a phishing scam and an attempt to get your personal account information. The e-mail began "Attention E-mail Account Holder" and asked for a reply with personal information and passwords. The North Georgia Conference will never request your e-mail address and password. If you think you have replied to the fraudulent email, please contact the conference IT office immediately at support@ngumc.org so they can recover your account.
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Upcoming Events

Christian Educator's Lunch Group 11/3/2009
GNSV Ministerial Review 11/4/2009
Contemporaneous Worship Event 11/5/2009
Eastern European and Balkan Consultation VI 11/5/2009 - 11/7/2009
GNSV Ministerial Reivew 11/5/2009
Youthworker Gathering 11/5/2009
"A Call from God" Retreat for Adults 11/6/2009
World Community Day 11/7/2009
"A Call from God" Retreat for Adults 11/7/2009
Lay Mission Training 11/7/2009
Leadership Training 11/7/2009 - 11/8/2009
Quarterly Board Meeting 11/7/2009
Lay Mission Training 11/8/2009

Entire Conference Calendar
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Links of Interest

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Lectionary Scriptures
Sunday, November 8

Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17
Psalm 127
Hebrews 9:24-28
Mark 12:38-44
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