The Creative Power of Words - David Kitz

Have you ever considered the creative power of words? Words change the world. They bring order out of

Foster farm, Durham, ON

chaos. Words shine the light of day into the darkness of this world. From the very beginning words have been imbued with divine power. The psalmist reminds us, "By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth."

But it's not only God's words that have this vast power. Our words—human words, whether spoken written or thought have enormous power too. Adam's first job assignment was to speak words—to name the animals. Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals (Genesis 2: 19-20).

Strangely, God didn't do what every parent does. He didn't tell Adam what the animals were called. Adam told God their names. By so doing, God vested mankind with the power of language. Life is what we call it. Our words describe the world and give meaning to it.

MosaiCanada 150, Gatineau, Quebec

Through our words we bring order and make sense of the world around us. As a writer I am continually processing and attempting to make sense of this chaotic thing called life. I do it with words. From the beginning of time, by divine command that's what we are called to do. We are to speak order into chaos—speak accuracy and clarity into this world’s muddled reality.

With our words we shine the light of truth onto a situation. With words we write laws, administer justice and design government. With words we woo and romance and vow our love to one another. Our words create imaginary realms into which we can travel—words that transport. With our words we have the power to elevate the human spirit, or crush someone to the point of suicide.

Finally, there is something innately prophetic about our words. What we think, speak and write is potent. It has within in it the latent ability to become reality. Therefore, we need to guard our lips. See James 3:1-12. The psalmist reminds us not only of the power of the word of the LORD, but also our own words. For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm.

Response: LORD God, help me give careful consideration to my words. Today, may my words, whether written or spoken, be a creative force for good in Jesus' name. Amen.

Your Turn: How has God used your words for good lately? Are your words bringing order out of chaos?

David Kitz experiments in bringing order out of chaos in our nation's capital. His historical novel The Soldier Who Killed a King was released by Kregel Publications on July 25th. 

Words Immortal - M. Laycock

While attending a trade show recently I entered a draw at a booth advertising photos put on canvass. I won a 40% discount on a 12x18 canvass and the woman told me I could send them any photo I wanted and any wording I wanted to be put on the photo. "You can even put a poem you wrote on it if you like," she said, showing me an example. "It will be immortalized." My ears immediately perked up. I liked the sound of that.

It was a few days before I got around to picking a photo. I scanned through some of my writing to find something appropriate but couldn't settle on anything. Then I began to think about that word 'immortalized.' Wow. A big word. A big concept. Then I chuckled at myself. Yes, it appeals to my writer's ego to think that my words might last forever, but I know the concept is flawed. A printed piece of canvass may last longer than a piece of paper but it cannot be immortal. Only God's words can and do make that claim. The prophet Isaiah tells us, "The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever" (Isaiah 40:8).

I saw proof of that fact in Jerusalem a few years ago. I was stunned to silence while walking through The Shrine of the Book that houses the Isaiah scrolls found in the caves of Qumran near the Dead Sea. It was awe-inspiring to see those fragments of scripture penned so long ago, amazing to think that though the parchments are fragile and disintegrating, the words themselves have survived and will survive, forever.

There was another book on display that day, one that literally made me catch my breath. Encased in glass and set in a prominent place is The Aleppo Codex. This manuscript was created in about 920 A.D. and is the oldest copy of the Hebrew Bible in existence. It is also the first manuscript to be bound the way books are bound today, rather than rolled in a scroll. In essence, it is the first book.

The history of the Aleppo Codex is intriguing and speaks to the zeal of the Jews for preserving God’s word, and to God’s zeal for doing the same. Though it has been stolen, ravaged in riots, almost destroyed by fire, and lost entirely, (in fact a chunk of it is still missing), the book has survived.

There was something stirring about seeing it. I wanted to touch it, but of course the glass prevented that. But I still had a sense of profound connectedness. Here was an ancient object, words copied by a rabbi centuries ago, that is still used today to teach about God. These are the same words that are in the various copies of the scripture I have in my own home, the words I can sit and read any time I want to. These are the words God has given us to teach us about himself. As I stared at that first book, the feeling of being connected to those ancient people and to God himself was deeply moving.

The experience has given me a new awe for this thing I do called writing. No, my words will not last forever but God has given me the skill and will to write because He has purpose for my words. What an amazing thing God gave us when he inspired those men long ago to create an alphabet. What an amazing thing that God continues to call “scribes” to record and create, using the tools of writing, all to his glory.

I sent the photo away to that company to make the small canvass with words on it. But they aren't my words. I chose a passage of scripture instead.

****

Marcia's second novel, A Tumbled Stone has just been released. Visit her website - www.vinemarc.com

REMEMBER AND THINK - Gibson

A pile of remembering stones sits at the edge of my town, in the form of a boulder-encrusted cenotaph. It rises clean from the earth and points skywards, like God himself planted it. On its front the builders placed a polished granite plaque, engraved with names of men and women from the area who have served in Canada’s armed forces.

My three small grandbeans and I passed the marker while out walking one day. The sun reflected on the plaque, and while the children chased each other around its sloped sides, I stood running my index finger down the names, looking for one I knew.

The children noticed. “What does it say, Nana? Read the words!”

“The words are the names of soldiers who lived around here,” I said, and began reading. I stopped abruptly when I came to the word “KILLED” after one of the names.

“Why did you say “killed”, Nana?” One of the Beans piped up.

“That means this soldier died during the war, honey. He never came home.”

“Why didn’t he?”

More questions followed, each, like the cenotaph itself, rising higher, and narrowing to a pinnacle.

That didn’t come until days later, from the eldest. “Nana, does God love war?”

Yikes. Who said kids are simple? “No,” I told him emphatically, “God doesn’t love war.” At five, I thought, that’s all you need to know.

For now.

Christians have disagreed for centuries about war. Pacifists and those who believe in something called the Just War theory—that sometimes war is a necessary evil—each have their own reasons for their positions.

I’ve struggled with the issue myself—detesting my own tendency to box God in. But I’ve landed—barely, reluctantly, sadly—in the Just War camp. It seems more consistent with the big picture of Biblical truth.

One day when they’re older, I plan to discuss this again with my grandchildren. We’ll look together at Bible verses like Ecclesiastes 3:8, that says there’s a time for war and a time for peace. At Old Testament passages that reveal God instructing his people in the necessary techniques of battle against the enemy.

I’ll take them over to the New Testament, to the words of Christ—the Prince of Peace. Words that demonstrate that though peace is his ultimate objective, Jesus underlined the importance of battling for the things that maintain it: opportunities for salvation, justice, and protection for innocent, helpless people, and those in danger because of evil forces—wherever in the world they are.

I’ll do my level best to explain wrong motives for war—protectionism, greed, patriotism, prejudice, and nationalistic causes—and their consequences. Sadly, most wars today spring from those.

This column is a significant departure from my usual. Blame the important pile of rocks at the edge of town, and my very curious grandbeans. Because it’s for them, I need to say this:

Remembering is of no value if we thoughtlessly walk away.

***

(Note: the above is this week's edition of my weekly newspaper column, Sunny Side Up--Listen in audio at www.kathleengibson.ca/sunnysideup Nov. 10)

Kathleen Gibson

http://www.kathleengibson.ca/

Sunny Side Up www.kathleengibson.ca/sunnysideup

Blogging at www.kathleengibson.ca/ramblings

Holy Way – Lawrence

(This was first published on my website as a meditation in October 2007 under the title Wilderness Highway.)

A highway shall be there [in the wilderness], and it shall be called the Holy Way; …it shall be for God’s people, no traveler…shall go astray. Isaiah 35:8

For the last few days, I have been thinking about this wilderness highway that Isaiah speaks of and wondering what it means for us. When we (God’s people) are in a wilderness or difficult situation, a highway appears for us. This highway is called the Holy Way and Isaiah tells us that no traveler on this road shall go astray.

This highway is owned by God and is a way of spiritual pilgrimage where we grow to spiritual maturity and holiness as we go through life’s difficulties and joys. As long as we keep to this path that is provided we will not go astray.

The Holy Way is a free way for God’s people. There are no tolls to be paid to walk on this road; it is an open highway for all who call themselves God’s people and who desire to walk in God’s way and grow in God’s Spirit.

The Holy Way may come under attack and into disrepair but it is continually being defended and repaired by the prayers of God’s people and the Word of God. We, who are God’s people, help to keep this road in good repair by keeping in daily prayer and communication with God; by reading God’s word and listening to God’s voice.

In the Old Testament, we read of the prophet, Elisha, being surrounded by an enemy army. His assistant saw the enemy and was afraid. Elisha saw the enemy but also saw God’s army on the surrounding hillside. Those who are with us are more than are with them, Elisha told his assistant. He asked God to open the assistant’s eyes so that he could see what Elisha saw and trust in God.

The army of God’s love surrounds us. We have to learn to trust in that surrounding presence in order to overcome our fear and walk the Holy Way in safety. In partnership with God and God’s people we keep the road in good repair, mending the rough spots on the road as we go. The materials for the repairs are given to us in our daily time with God—our prayers, our Bible reading, our devotional reading, our contrition and forgiveness.

This is the spiritual way that we travel day by day on the journey of life. We face each joy and each danger with open eyes upon the Lord and listening ears upon God’s word. We walk the Holy Way in faithfulness so that we do not go astray.

Colour and Aroma - Laycock

I leaned over my friend’s shoulder as he crouched on the riverbank. Clear water swirled over the dirt and gravel and spilled over the edge of the large pan in his hands. Slowly the larger stones washed away, leaving only fine black sand. He moved the pan gently, then stopped. “There,” he said, holding it up for me to look. “See it?”

I peered at the spot where he pointed. Tiny slivers glinted in the sun. “That’s it?”

My friend nodded. “Enough colour to keep us going.”

Those tiny flecks of gold found on the creek that day resulted in a major excavation of that area. A crew of men and machinery descended and the hunt for more gold was on. Similar scenes have been played out in the gold fields of the Yukon for over a hundred years. A small sliver gleaming in a pan was all it took for men to move mountains, dam rivers and create feats of engineering to equal the Panama Canal. All it took was a tiny bit of “colour.”

In his book, The Only Necessary Thing, Henri Nouwen writes: “The spiritual life is a long and often arduous search for what you have already found...The desire for God’s unconditional love is the fruit of having been touched by that love.”

When you find a sliver of love, you seek more of it. When you find a sliver of truth you tune your ear for more. When you find a sliver of God, your whole being longs for more of Him. That longing in our hearts is not unlike sitting down to a good meal at a good restaurant. The plates put before us steam with delicious aromas. We take the utensils in hand and take the first bite. Then another and another, until the food is consumed. Momentarily satisfied, we begin planning a return trip to the same place. We have tasted and it was good. Our natural instinct is to want more.

God has put his colour all around us – signs that He is here. His aroma surrounds us – it rises from the words of His people and His Word, the Bible. There is only one catch. The miners in the Yukon had to find that first sliver of gold by testing the ground. Sitting in a restaurant surrounded by good smells won’t convince you that the food is delicious. You have to take the first bite.

In Psalm 34:8 David says – “Taste and see that the Lord is good...” He did, and found more love and forgiveness than he had a right to. We will too. We’ve seen the colour – the glories of His creation that surrounds us. All be have to do is dig – look around and see. We’ve smelled the aroma – the wisdom of His word and his people. All we have to do is take a bite – read His word often, surround ourselves with Christian friends and mentors. What we will find is far more precious than gold, far more satisfying than any gourmet meal. It will mean engaging in an adventure far more exciting than any gold rush, far more satisfying than a visit to the most expensive restaurant in the world.