What Did You Call Me?

The English language can be very interesting. A friend of mine from the long ago memories of my youth enjoyed using the word “oxymoron”, which when I first heard the word, I assumed it was a negative insult to an individual’s mental capacity. Upon learning the meaning of the word, I too began seeking out the oxymoron’s of the world. Surprisingly, they’re not too difficult to find, including a calendar given to me, by a relative, which was all about oxymoron’s.

We also encounter expressions and phrases that often to not seem to go together or in our understanding of our language, don’t fit. Examples from my own experiences would be words like “man”, to address anyone of any gender or age, “stupid” to mean a great experience, and “bad” to mean good. I’m sure a group of 5 people could list multiple such examples. While spending time in Erie, PA, I drove past a store whose sign read, “Big Woody’s Fireworks: Stun guns, pepper spray, throwing stars, walnut chocolate fudge”.

Hard to imagine that I could visit a store such as Big Woody’s and purchase items to meet both my self defense needs and sweet tooth. In reality, I suppose we encounter contradicting signs in our life on an at least weekly if not daily basis. I listen to so many individuals who are making attempts to get debit in control while their government attempts to spend their way out of debit. I’ve seen news coverage of parents encouraging their children to lie. I’ve seen advertisements of insurance companies expressing their concern for their customers while jumping through loopholes. Promises are made with no intention of delivery, and “facts” are stated when the one making the statement is aware of the mistruth of their “facts”. We have companies who express care for their employees while they move their businesses out of the country. What we see and hear is not always the reality of truth.

So much of this is beyond our control, and what about what is within our control, the “oxymorons” of our own life. How often have we told another, “trust me”, when we knew we couldn’t deliver. How often have we screamed at our children and then told them we loved them. How often have we stated our devotion to a marriage, a relationship, a person, and done nothing to improve its status? How often have we said, “I love you”, and betrayed our beloved. How often have we claimed the truth of God and lived the reality of Satan. Truth and reality can be stinging; I continue to get stung myself.

Big Tent Revival wrote a lyric stating just this, “There's a star by your name in the book of life, Angels are watching you overtime, They can't understand why a child of the King, Would be happier living with swine”. That truth can be biting, as it continues to bite me. It is an easy task to look “out there” and see the “oxymorons” of life, quite the different task to look inside and see our own heart inconsistencies. I encourage you, my friend and reader, not to look inside to promote negative self talk and fill yourself with guilt, but to discover what you need to give to God, to allow Christ to cleanse from your soul, and how to begin to continually walk that narrow road towards the King, away from the swine.

I encourage you, my reader and friend, to REACH towards God by Realizing the pits in your life, Encounter your God in a loving and real manner, take Action to change your mindset and behaviors (small steps lead to big gains), Choose to submit to and embrace your God and Savior, and walk the road that leads to your Heavenly Father. No one said the road would be easy, free of life’s oxymoron’s, but oh so sweet the road can be that leads towards God. Be real, be clear, be true, and be with God.


(The writings in this post are random thoughts and observations and are NEVER intended as professional or personal advice. Take what works and leave the rest. For information on mental health and/or substance abuse help, visit http://www.rodneyvalandra.com and refer to the links page.)

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Worthy and Wanted

"Don't You Love to be Loved?"

Worse or Best?