Thanksgiving Dialect

I realized it has been a while since I blogged. I have been busy at work. Sometimes we have a lot of criminal matters and sometime a lot of civil matters. I am usually quite entertained, not so much by the work, or the law, but by the people. (Oh, and I wore high heels three days last week. I know my mother is proud.)


Someone I know posted on their facebook status this week: If you only had tomorrow, the things you gave thanks for today, what would you have tomorrow? Isn't that an interesting question. I must admit, many days I would be left with nothing. It isn't that I am not thankful, but sometimes I get so busy and wrapped up with myself I forget to acknowledge the blessings given to me. AND, worst of all, sometimes I tend to focus on the negatives in my life, rather than look at all of the positives.

I have had a new cellphone or "smartphone" for about two weeks now. I say "smartphone" because it is so complicated it has made me feel "stupid." I couldn't even figure out how to get it to ring the first three days. I finally had to look at myself in the mirror and repeat, "eight year olds can do this, get it together." Okay, that isn't exactly what I said, but new technology is definitely a mindset. Anyway, my new phone has the ability to download all of these applications. I downloaded this one application - I know it has some fancy name, but basically it is the Bible. It isn't just the Bible because you can read passages from all different versions of the Bible.

So, on Thursday night I spent the night with the people I stay with sometimes, lets' just call her Mrs. S. (She taught me to make biscuits from scratch last week.) I like staying there, but there are down sides to this. First, when I wake up - I never know where I am. I wear contacts and I am blind without them. Therefore, every morning I wake up and try to figure out if I am home or at Mrs. S's. Second, I always read the Bible at night and usually read a little devotional. Granny and I used to always read the Upper Room every night, but she is pretty much blind now and we don't do that anymore. So, on Thursday night, having no devotional or Bible, I was able to read the Bible on my phone - isn't that crazy? But what I discovered was that you can put in any word in this application, and it will bring up passages with that word in it - I think it is soo cool.

This morning before "Face the Nation" and getting dressed for Church, I decided to give this application another shot. I typed in "love" and Ephesians 5 popped up. You are more than welcome to read the entire chapter, but upon my first reading this scripture stuck out: "Don't talk dirty or silly. That kind of talk doesn't fit our style. Thanksgiving is our dialect." Ephesians 5:3-4, The Message. It made me think, is my dialect, thanksgiving? I have already admitted that I don't always give thanks for my many blessings, but is my everyday dialect thankful in nature? No, it isn't.

Now, I could make lots of excuses why my dialect isn't thanksgiving. I could blame it on my work- I am around people suing each other for money and they are greedy, and I am around a lot of people who have committed horrible crimes. This is all true. In fact, this work can make people hard hearted against the world - rendering one's dialect bitter. It is funny though, most people would think it would be easier to live out a dialect of thanksgiving working at a church, which is where I worked last year, than working in an environment such as the one I am now in. However, I am realizing this job is teaching me the importance of my every day dialect.

I have realized that people around you will take your lead. If your attitude, if your dialect, if your body language, is that of a thankful, inviting, loving person, it will eventually catch on to those around you. I had to interview people who are out on bond and were applying for a court appointed attorney. Some of them approached me extremely humble and embarrassed, some approached me with an attitude of entitlement, and some were skeptical of the entire situation. But the one thing I noticed - they all took their cues from my attitude. I found this extremely intriguing. Once I smiled at them and were nice and friendly, their attitude completely changed and it was like we were old friends - even when I had to question them for claiming that their water bills were $400. I was even able to ask this girl with really long fingernails (I mean these things were six inches long and curled around) how she was able to function? She laughed and said, "oh girl you just get used to them." (I wanted to ask how she brushed her teeth, or even went to the bathroom, but I refrained.)

Obviously, there is a contingency of people who would say these people don't deserve to be treated nicely - I really do not want to get into that discussion. BUT I truly believe that our attitude towards others and our language towards others, affects our own personal lives. Think about when someone has made you mad and hurt you. Your hurt and anger can eat you alive even after the person has apologized, because you will never get over it until YOU forgive the person. I think the way we treat and talk to others is much the same way. Until we can change our dirty and silly talk, our angry attitudes, and be more thankful for our blessings and thankful in our language, we will remain unthankful and head down a road of hard heartedness.

Therefore, I am definitely taking this scripture as a challenge to be more thankful, not just with my language, but in my thoughts, words and deeds. The beginning of this chapter says, "watch what God does, and then you do it, like children who learn proper behavior from their parents. Mostly what God does is love you. Keep company with him and learn a life of love. Observe how Christ loved us. His love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn't love in order to get something from us but to give everything of himself to us. Love like that." Ephesians 5:1-2. The Message. I can't help but think that thanksgiving and love somehow go hand in hand, and I am thankful that God loves me even when I don't acknowledge my blessings.