Conversation and Conduct

Hello Readers!

One of the most evident things I am learning is communication and the power of words. Though I have read Genesis multiple times, until I studied speech and conversation from a biblical context, did I realize that God spoke the world into existence. We as His children have the power to speak words of life into our own lives. Both death and life are in the power of the tongue. We do not have to say everything that comes to our mind. Our words are a reflection of our heart, when someone speaks with an unbridled mouth I can know that their heart is unbridled too. A fool is known by the multitude of his words. The words that we speak have the power to justify or condemn us when we meet with God in the Day of Judgment. Our words are powerful and we are responsible to God for what we say.

View from my bus stop in my town

Now let me explain how I came to this revelation. A sentence, with correct German grammar, can take a long time to formulate. That means, I have to really think if what I want to say is worth saying or not, considering the amount of effort required on my brain. I am a gregarious person; some even call me a ‘social butterfly’. If you know me, you know that I truly enjoy interacting with people. The grammar hinders me from being able to speak with as many people as I want to, which has turned out to be a great thing. Instead of talking, I listen. James 1:19 says let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak and slow to wrath. The word ‘let’ implies that every man has a choice. YOU have a choice.

Some of my most treasured conversations are those with my Grandfather. He is a man of few words, so when he opens his mouth I know to listen. I hang on his every syllable. I have noticed during my experience as an exchange student, that when I raise my hand in class or begin to say something in a group of my friends, that the room falls to complete silence to hear what I have to say. So when I speak, I want my words to be righteous and just. I wonder how many people would be ashamed, if their conversations through the week were to be printed out and handed to their Pastor.

Old-fashion German car

Last week I met with twenty-five CBYXer’s in Bad Honnef for our midyear stay camp. The first day we visited Bonn, and the second day Köln. In Bonn we had a city tour, visited governmental buildings and museums, and ate dinner all together at a ‘typical German Resteraunt’. (It was hard to find something on the menu I haven’t eaten yet!) In Köln we visited the Cathedral, had a city tour and visited the Lindt Chocolate factory. I took over three hundred pictures and half a dozen videos during the first two days. 

This is the picture of the Catholic Cathedral (click here for a virtual tour).

It took more than six centuries to be completed. It is the tallest Gothic building in the world. I was beyond flabbergasted when our tour guide informed us that the sole reason it was built. The ONE and only reason, was to honor the bones of the Three Wise Men who visited Jesus in Bethlehem. Just their bones. After I found that out, I had yet another reason to be glad that Jesus resurrected from the cross and did not leave His bones behind.

Line of resteraunts in Köln (Cologne)

The Lindt Chocolate factory was cool, I read about the history of the cocoa bean and there was a room where you could feel the muggy climate where it grows, but they don't grow their own beans. I saw chocolate being poured into their forms, shaken by huge machines, then put through a giant refrigerator. I also encountered a large group of American students who were also visiting the chocolate museum. As you can guess, I struck up a conversation. They looked shocked when I spoke English, because they thought at first I was a native German. I didn’t eat any chocolate that day, but want to return again in the spring to visit again. In the Lindt Café, I ordered carrot ginger soup with curry mousse on top and an espresso. The soup was so spicy that I couldn’t taste the espresso that was so strong it almost gave me a heart attack. It was one of my most memorable lunches here. 

Chocolate Lady! The chocolate fountain is behind her.

Enjoying the soup with 2 CB'ers

In the Bonn museum we learned about the history of Germany after World War II. Berlin was completely totaled to ground level, the majority of the men were separated from their wives or died in the war. There is a saying that ‘women built Germany’, because they were the only surviving working force left. There were pictures of women stacking bricks into massive piles to survey how many they had then to begin rebuilding. Here is a picture of some of the signs people posted around the city to search for a lost family member.

Wo bist Du? - Where are you?

The youth hotel that we stayed at turned out to be more beautiful than I expected. Though it was a mix of fog and drizzle I explored the trails with a CBYX friend of mine. The landscape was gorgeous considering there were no signs of life. The floor of the forest was orange with withered leaves, and the bark was dark brown with moisture. The only color was electric green moss that covered fallen trees. This picture was taken from really far away, if you click on the picture you can see how high up the tree I’m sitting on actually was. I also want to return in spring time to wander through the paths again.

Overall, the week I spent with Americans went well. I learned, based on multiple actions on their part that I have left in many senses the stage of childhood. I spent the week listening to stories, watching movies, sharing jokes, and reflecting on how I have changed. I have not had time to think what it will be like being surrounded by Americans completely. The Monday I was back in school I found that we will have five midyear exchange stay students join us for two weeks. The contents of the day is always new and unexpected but what stays the same is the need for communication. God is challenging me to mean what I say, and teaching me to ‘keep my mouth’. To ‘keep’ means in the Greek/Hebrew dictionary to guard. Proverbs 21:23 promises ‘whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles’. The last thing I need is a self-engaged battle that I was never meant to fight in.

May God bless you this week and give you a revelation of the importance of your words,

Alles Gute (All is well), Genevieve