Rays of Light

Genevieve was without a doubt one of the most eccentric characters I had ever met. This Seventy–year-old woman would frequently recount details of her past exploits, which were every bit as strange as she. Every now and then she would tuck tufts of bleached-blonde hair back into the nest piled atop her head then gently reshape it. Heaven forbid she should recap an adventure without looking as august as possible.

There was nothing stately about her voice though; it grated on me. She spoke with the hoarse voice of a smoker and her laugh was just as raspy. Even so, her stories always amused me, especially the parts in which she began with the words “I said to myself –Self, I said…”

At this point she always waved her quellazaire slightly as though she were a Hollywood celebrity. I never actually saw her inhale smoke from the thin brown cigarette it held, but I must admit, this little ploy did add to the dramatic effect and held my attention. I was always interested to hear what she said to herself and how those words impacted the decisions she made in the midst of her then current exploit.

Truth be known, I never considered her talking to herself to be one of her eccentricities. I do it all the time. (I even answer myself, but don’t tell anyone). It’s true I occasionally mumble to myself about trivial stuff but mostly I encourage myself in the Lord. Hey, King David did that, so I figure I am in pretty good company (I Sam 30:6).

There is little doubt the Apostle Paul did too. In fact, he told us to be filled with the Holy Spirit — Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord (Ephesians 5:19). He goes on to say that we should always be giving thanks. Elsewhere, he says to rejoice always. I don’t know about you but I do a lot of that out loud.

The general populace might think I’m a bit crazy but I’m not always talking to them anyway so what does it matter? Sometimes I am talking about them though. For example, “Bless that person Lord,” or “Praise God, it is so good to see someone with such good manners in our day and age!” They don’t usually seem to mind that sort of thing.

Let’s not forget that the mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life (Proverbs 10:11). That being the case, perhaps we should all talk to ourselves (and to others) a bit more. We should be reminding ourselves constantly about what God’s word has to say. After all, faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. (Romans 10:17).

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe said, “All truly wise thoughts have been thought thousands of times; But to make them truly ours we must think them over again honestly (and long enough), until they take root in our personal experience.”

I don’t know about you but I learn the written word best by hearing it, which is why I read my Bible out loud and/or listen to the Bible on cassette. I even pray better out loud. I agree with von Goethe’s statement though I prefer to hear what I am thinking.

You should try it sometime. These days you don’t even have to feel like a nut to do so. If you are in public and a scripture or a prayer comes to mind, don’t be afraid to say it out loud, people will just think you are talking on some kind of hands-free device or something anyway. I do recommend, however, that you not answer yourself in public — that might draw a stare or two.

Finally, here is a fun little perk for you to try the next time someone asks you something like, “That must’ve been awful. How did you manage to get through it?” Look them straight in the eye, smile and say “I said to myself –Self, I said….”