Words of Worth

Good Punctuation Saves Lives

October 18, 2014

Let's eat grandma

Let’s eat, Grandma!

Let’s eat Grandma!

Good punctuation saves lives!

This reminded me of my former life as a junior high English teacher and all the times my students asked me, “Why do we need to know all of this grammar?” I’m sure my answer was the profound answer of every great teacher, “Someday you will need this.” Would that I had seen the coffee cup back then! Would that I could have a redo with my students because the more I study Scripture, the more I regret my response to my students.

Recently, while reading Genesis 1, I was overcome by how understanding grammar helped me to worry less and trust more in the Sovereignty of God. The first verse in the entire Bible reads:

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1)

The first subject of the entire Bible is GOD and the first action verb in the entire Bible is CREATED.  And then, if we continue to read through Genesis 1, we see almost 50 subject/verb pairs:

God said

God saw

God separated

God called

God made

God placed

God created

God blessed

God completed

God formed

What’s the point of this grammar lesson?  The point is that God is the Sovereign Creator who created the universe and everything and everyone in it! When we read this and truly believe His Word and Who He is, then we have nothing to worry about in this life.  God created all and He takes care of all that He has created!

So if I could bring up the subject again with my junior high students I would say, while holding my Let’s eat, Grandma coffee cup, “Knowing grammar will help you trust in the Sovereignty of God and break the chains of worry.”

See now that I, I am He and there is no god besides Me

Deuteronomy 32:39