We decided to host a foreign exchange student in our home the year that our daughter was a senior.   Kristine, from Norway, came to live with us. While driving to the lake, on our first short trip together, I had prepared some brownies to eat in the car.  I asked Kristine if she would like a brownie…she held up her finger indicating, “wait just a moment”, she looked in her translation book and then had a funny look on her face.  She said, “You want to give me a camera?”  (for those that are younger…there once was a camera named “Brownie”)  We all laughed and realized there are different meanings for the same word.  Kristina was happy the brownie I offered meant a sweet dessert!

A word could be an obstacle for understanding something!  We can get lost in the meaning of words.  I found that when I heard a term/word used, and I applied my understanding of that word based on what I had understood it to mean, I would be offended.  For example, the word “Conversion”.  As I understood the word…  My conversion to Christ happened at a very young age…so when someone Catholic would say to me about being converted to Catholicism… I thought…”I am already converted to Christ.”  Conversion has many aspects to its meaning.   Yes, we can get bogged down with the meaning of a word if we don’t know where a person is coming from… just like the English language… a word can mean opposites.. i.e.

dust: 1 to remove dust. 2 to cover with dust.

hysterical: 1 frightened and out of control. 2 funny.

fast: 1 moving quickly. 2 solid and unable to move.