Sunday’s Blessing – 03/01/2026 – 2nd Sunday of Lent – Thermostat or Thermometer
I am curious by nature. I tend to notice change when it occurs in other people and things around me. Unfortunately, I don’t always notice it in me. Humans are constantly changing, being affected by their environment, including people and things which surround them.
I first noticed this back in elementary school. There were cliques who acted, talked, and dressed alike for no other reason than to be identified with the people in their group. For whatever reason, their fashion, habits, and personality all reflected what the collective came to call “it” (whatever that means).
Another instance came from my travels abroad. My company sent me to London twice for two weeks at a time. When I arrived, I joined some others from our company who were already there working on the project. I noticed something peculiar about them. Their speech was different. Not just the words they used, but also the way they spoke. They had already begun being assimilated into their environment. After my first week there, I noticed in myself. I was amazed at how quickly we adapt to how we hear others speak.
In my current work environment, mostly virtual meetings and e-mail/texts, I noticed a change in the way these folks communicate. There three specifics I have observed. The first is the use of specific words/phrases which have spread to others. At the top of my pet-peeves is the phrase, “Correct me if I’m wrong, but …” This is unnecessary and carries with it a sense of arrogance implying they are, indeed, correct.
Another behavior in both spoken and written communication is “verbing” (changing nouns into verbs – texting for instance) and omission of necessary verbs. For instance, normal people would say, “The data needs to be corrected.” This has now become, “The data needs corrected.” My brain, influenced by observational comedians, immediately thinks, “Data, you need get your act together.” I realize I’m not normal, but it irritates me to no end. I once corrected the grammar written in the task description assigned to me and was chastised for doing so.
The last in my rant has to do with verbal ticks. I’m not speaking of involuntary caused by medical conditions or syndromes like Teret’s. It’s unconscious mimicking of others. Since most of our meetings are virtual (without cameras), when someone has to pause in their statement (usually giving reports of current activity), they begin making sounds to assure the others on the meeting know they are not finished, but instead searching for what they will say next. The most common one is the “ch” sound, as in cheese. It’s repeated while trying to form the next statement. This has spread like wildfire. I now hear it by many on these calls.
I realize very little of this has any bearing on Lent, but it most certainly is relevant to our life as Christians. Where and how we spend our time impacts our life. Who we associate with impacts our life. Before you say it, I am not talking about Christians becoming like the ostrich and bury our heads in the “Christian” ground by getting a job at a Christian company and only associate with Christians, and only go to Christian gatherings, and only listen/read Christian things. I’m simply drawing attention to the fact that we are influenced by these things. Bottom line, we need to be thermostats instead of thermometers. A thermometer is changed by its environment. A thermostat changes its environment.
This is exactly what Jesus was trying to communicate when He told us to be “salt and light.” We need to shine our Light into dark places. We need to season those with whom we associate with Salt. These things are not accomplished by carrying a Bible large enough to choke a mule, or by speaking King James English using archaic words which do not communicate in today’s vernacular. Being salt and light means “speaking the truth in love” and “lifting up the heads which hang down.”
Jesus spent time with “sinners” because how else would they hear His message? He had conversations with pious religious zealots and dishonest businessmen. He had dinner with those who had no regard for helping others and He also fed those who were hungry. At times, He was affected by His environment. He was “moved with compassion” when He saw the suffering of others. He “wept” when His friend died, knowing he would come back to life.
If at all possible, let’s find a way to be human and be touched by people and things around us for the sake of redemption, not compromise. Let us “reveal” Christ to others by showing them what Jesus would do if He were in the room, because He is.
Today’s blessing:
And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:18 (ESV)But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing. James 1:25 (ESV)“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 5:13-16 (ESV)
