Words, the power of words, the power we give to words....
I remember when I started to see how many words there were in the world. They are everywhere! And some words can feel more powerful than others. Right now I can think of pandemic, quarantine, etc. Before this past year, I only read the word quarantine in books and attrributed pandemic to the past.
If you watched the service from the 12th, I used a book to talk about words (I am a bibliophile). This is probably one of my favourite books. When we read a book that has no images, we automatically attribute the picture we have of the world to that book. I don't want to give it all away, but that is not the case with this book. (Just as an aside, don't watch the movie, read the book; it is not long and it is so much better than the movie.)
The passage I read dealt with the word "love" and how it had become obsolete. For us, it is hard to imagine a world without love. Sometimes we joke about church and say they are three answers to every question: God, Jesus, and/or love.
It makes you think about how things can change and how we use words. We should be careful with words because they do have power. That old adage "sticks and stones may break my bones but words can never hurt me" isn't really true. Words can hurt and they can leave invisible scars on a person.
So, think before you speak. Take a breath before you yell at someone. Remember that important word from church: "love". Be the giver of kindness.
Peace and love,
Michelle