Good Words

  

My mother-in-law had just died, and we were discussing who would write the eulogy. I had written a blog about this and also the first draft of the official obituary, so my name came up (I declined). Vaguely, I remembered that the meaning of eulogy was something like praise. And I recognized some Greek roots in the word. So I decided to look up the etymology of the word.

The Online Dictionary of Etymology has this:

mid-15c., from Latin eulogium, from Greek eulogia "praise; good or fine language" (in New Testament, "blessing"), from eu "well" (see eu-) + -logia "speaking" (see -logy).

The Strong's Talking Greek and Hebrew Dictionary has this:

(G2127) εὐλογέω (eulogeō) - from a compound of (G2095) (eu) and (G3056) (logos); to speak well of, i.e. (religiously) to bless (thank or invoke a benediction upon, prosper) :- bless, praise

Or, to put it another way, eulogy means good words.

As we were discussing the life of my mother-in-law after she died, one of the good words that came up was that she never spoke ill of anyone. In other words, one of the good words about her was that she was a woman of good words. What a great legacy. The same can not be said of me.

It's interesting that we typically reserve the eulogy until after someone dies. If we have something nice to say about someone, why wait until they cannot hear? I did once write some good words for my sister's husband while he was still with us and could appreciate them.

We can have a profound positive impact on others when we are people of good words. The Apostle Paul wrote, "Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone." (Colossians 4:6 NIV) We all appreciate grace-filled conversations that build us up and encourage us.

Several years ago, I told the story of Kung Nang, who had to overcome words that discouraged her as she learned to play guitar. These days she is a member of the worship band in her church. The power of good words.

James wrote, "With the tongue we praise (eulogumen - ευλογουμεν) our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise (eulogia - ευλογια) and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. (James 3:9-10 NIV). We have a choice to make, we can use our words to eulogize someone, or we can use our words to curse them. Which will it be?

I'm not well known for my construction skills. If you put a hammer in my had it is more often a tool of destruction than of construction. Our words are like a hammer—we can use them to build up or to tear down.

As I write this, we have just received a message from someone noting the power of hurtful words. I, myself, have been the source of hurtful words in the past. But this should not be what characterizes us as believers. A piece of advice we tossed around as children (though we didn't always follow it ourselves) was, "if you don't have something nice to say, don't say it." Let us choose to eulogize the living—to be people of good words.


Following is the use of eulogy in the New Testament

Unless marked with asterisks, italicized words are from Strong's Greek 2127: eulogeō = bless, speak well of
All verses from the Lexam English Bible translation.

Matthew 14:19
And he commanded the crowds to recline for a meal on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks. And after breaking them, he gave the loaves to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds.

Matthew 21:9
And the crowds who went ahead of him and the ones who followed were shouting, saying, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!”

Matthew 25:34
Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world!

Matthew 23:39
For I tell you, you will never see me from now on until you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ”

Matthew 26:26
Now while they were eating Jesus took bread and, after giving thanks, he broke it, and giving it to the disciples, he said, “Take, eat, this is my body.”

Mark 6:41
And taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves and gave them to his disciples so that they could set them before them. And he distributed the two fish to them all.

Mark 8:7
And they had a few small fish, and after giving thanks for them, he said to set these before them also.

Mark 10:16
And after taking them into his arms, he blessed them, placing his hands on them.

Mark 11:9
And those who went ahead and those who were following were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!

Mark 11:10
Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest heaven!”

Mark 14:22
And while they were eating, he took bread and, after giving thanks, he broke it and gave it to them and said, “Take it, this is my body.”

Mark 14:61
But he was silent and did not reply anything. Again the high priest asked him and said to him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed* One?”

Luke 1:42
And she cried out with a loud shout and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!

Luke 1:64
And his mouth and his tongue were opened immediately, and he began to speak, praising God.

Luke 1:68
“Blessed* be the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has visited to help and has redeemed his people,

Luke 2:28
he took him in his arms and praised God and said,

Luke 6:28
bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.

Luke 9:16
And taking the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke them and began giving them to the disciples to set before the crowd.

Luke 13:35
Behold, your house has been left to you! And I tell you, you will never see me until the time will come when you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ”

Luke 19:38
saying, “Blessed is the king, the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

Luke 24:30
And it happened that when he reclined at the table with them, he took the bread and gave thanks, and after breaking it, he gave it to them.

Luke 24:50
And he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands, he blessed them.

Luke 24:51
And it happened that while he was blessing them, he parted from them and was taken up into heaven.

Luke 24:53
And they were continually in the temple courts praising God.

John 12:13
took the branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, and began crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord, even the king of Israel!”

Acts 3:26
God, after he had raised up his servant, sent him to you first, to bless you by turning each of you back from your wickedness!”

Romans 1:25
who exchanged the truth of God with a lie, and worshiped and served the creation rather than the Creator, who is blessed* for eternity. Amen.

Romans 9:5
to whom belong the patriarchs, and from whom is the Christ according to human descent, who is God over all, blessed* forever! Amen.

Romans 12:14
Bless those who persecute, bless and do not curse them.

Romans 15:29
and I know that when I come to you, I will come in the fullness of the blessing** of Christ.

Romans 16:18
For such people do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own stomach, and by smooth speech and flattery** they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting.

1 Corinthians 4:12
and we toil, working with our own hands. When we are reviled, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure;

1 Corinthians 10:16
The cup of blessing** which we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ?

1 Corinthians 14:16
For otherwise, if you praise in your spirit, how will the one who fills the place of the outsider say the “amen” at your thanksgiving, because he does not know what you are saying?

2 Corinthians 1:3
Blessed* is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,

2 Corinthians 9:5
Therefore I considered it necessary to urge the brothers that they should go on ahead to you and make arrangements in advance for your generous gift** that was promised previously, so this would be prepared as a generous gift** and not as grudgingly granted.

2 Corinthians 9:6
Now the point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows bountifully** will also reap bountifully**.

2 Corinthians 11:31
The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is blessed* forever, knows that I am not lying.

Galatians 3:9
So then, the ones who have faith are blessed together with Abraham who believed.

Galatians 3:14
in order that the blessing** of Abraham might come to the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

Ephesians 1:3
Blessed* is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing** in the heavenly places in Christ,

Hebrews 6:7
For ground that drinks the rain that comes often upon it, and brings forth vegetation usable to those people for whose sake it is also cultivated, shares a blessing** from God.

Hebrews 6:14
saying, “Surely I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply you.”

Hebrews 7:1
For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham as he was returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him,

Hebrews 7:6
But the one who did not trace his descent from them collected tithes from Abraham and blessed the one who had the promises.

Hebrews 7:7
Now without any dispute the inferior is blessed by the more prominent.

Hebrews 11:20
By faith also Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things that were going to happen.

Hebrews 11:21
By faith Jacob, as he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.

Hebrews 12:17
For you know that also afterwards, when he wanted to inherit the blessing**, he was rejected, because he did not find an occasion for repentance, although he sought it with tears.

James 3:9
With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God.

James 3:10
From the same mouth come blessing** and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so!

1 Peter 1:3
Blessed* be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

1 Peter 3:9
not repaying evil for evil or insult for insult, but on the other hand blessing others, because for this reason you were called, so that you could inherit a blessing.**
Revelation 5:12
saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slaughtered to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise**!”

Revelation 5:13
And I heard every creature that is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and in the sea and everything in them saying, “To the one who is seated on the throne and to the Lamb be praise** and honor and glory and power forever and ever.”

Revelation 7:12
saying, “Amen! Praise** and glory, and wisdom and thanksgiving, and honor and power and strength be to our God forever and ever. Amen!”

* Strong's Greek 2128: εὐλογητός eulogētos = to bless, well spoken of, worthy of praise

** Strong's Greek 2129: εὐλογία: eulogia = commendation, blessing

Change of Address

On Saturday, September 17, 2022, as family members lovingly watched over her, Betty Engler changed her permanent residence from Barrhead, Alberta, Canada to Paradise.

Betty Engler 1930-2022

Betty has changed addresses many times in her life. She was born on the island of Rügen off the northern coast of Germany in August, 1930. A couple of years later, her family moved to Groß Zastrow, near Greifswald, on the mainland.

The House on Rügen

In 1950, Betty married Werner Engler and moved back to Rügen, but only stayed there until 1952 when they moved back to the Greifswald area. They were only there a few months when they decided to sneak out out of what had become communist East Germany. In West Germany, after a brief stay in a refugee camp, the Englers lived in Lünern for a while but later settled in Lerche.

The House in Lerche

In 1963, Betty and Werner, along with their four children, moved to Alberta, Canada, living on a farm in the community of Freedom, near the town of Barrhead. It was during this season that I became a part of the Engler family.

Farmstead in Freedom, Alberta

The Englers lived on the farm until about 10 years ago, when they moved to a house in the town of Barrhead. However, for the past two years, Betty has been staying at Shepherd's Care in Barrhead.

The House in Barrhead

It seems Providential that we are here in Canada at this significant point in our parent's lives.

For some time, I had been feeling weary from our work, and have desparately been in need of a break. We planned to make a trip to Canada to visit Ingrid's parents. But there was a lot of uncertainty about when the best time would be. Our preference would have been earlier, but circumstances on the Canadian side caused us to plan a trip for September.

Our idea was to be here to help Ingrid's dad move into some senior housing in Barrhead, and then help get his house ready to sell. After that, we planned to get a few days of actual vacation in the mountains. On our first Sunday here, Betty came out of Shepherd's Care to have dinner with all the family that had gathered. However, she wasn't doing very well. Early the next morning, she was sent to the ER. and later that day she was admitted to the hospital. After a 92-year run. it looked like Betty was getting ready to change addresses for the last time.

As word got out, many family members gathered to help Ingrid's dad move to his new address and to be with her mom as she moved to hers. While her body may eventually lay in Manola Cemetery, Betty lives on with Jesus in Paradise and in the hearts of all who knew her.

Betty with her Husband, Three of her Daughters and one of her Sons

Dad's New Apartment

Many years ago, before I was married, I heard advice something like this: if you want to know what your wife will be like in the future, look at her mother. When I was thinking about marrying Ingrid, I followed this counsel. I saw in Ingrid's mom an intelligent, multi-talented, hard-working woman. I figured if Ingrid turned out like that, that would be awesome. And the sparkle I once saw in Betty's eyes, I continue to see in her daughter, my wife.

Betty's smile and laughter will no longer grace our dinner tables. But the physical challenges she faced in the past few years are now vanquished.

Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.  For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.  When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:
     “Death is swallowed up in victory.”
     “O death, where is your victory?
       O death, where is your sting?”
           1 Corinthians 15:51-55

When the Rooster Crows on the Manure Pile

Weather forecasting is an interesting science. In Thailand, we live close by the provincial meterological station. I've never gone in there, but we do look at the weather forecasts, though I'm not sure why.

We moved to Kamalasai in the dry season. One really doesn't need to look a a weather forecast in dry season, because it doesn't rain. And the temperatures are relatively similar each day. But as rainy season approached, I started to look at the forecasts more. For many days on end, there would be a probablility of precipitation between 30 and 35 percent. One would figure that it would rain about once every three days—but it didn't.

Later I figured that the forecasters must just be good statiticians, because as long as you predict a number between 1 and 99 percent, you're never wrong, you're just playing the odds. You just might not want to bring these people along as consultants when you go to the casino.

But then this happened: they predicted a 100% chance of preciptation for a certain portion of one afternoon, but then they changed their mind and lowered it before the time came. This has happened on more than one occasion. Are they allowed to do that? I mean, I think that if you predict a 100% chance of something, then you are committed to the outcome.

My wife told me an old German saying that seems to be a good weather forecasting tool:

Kräht der Hahn auf dem Mist, ändert sich das Wetter oder bleibt, wie es ist

Which roughly translates: When the rooster crows in the manure pile, the weather will change — or stay the same.

We're fortunate that we have a weather forecaster that lives across the street from us. This cockerel belongs to the proprietor of a coffin maker, and it hangs out in front of shop all day and all night, every day. It may not have a manure pile, but this prognosticator of precipitation starts his forecast about 3 am each day: the weather will either change or stay the same.

This Storm Passed us by to the North

This Storm Passed us by to the South - with Lots of Thunder

This Storm Finally Brought us Rain

Online Dating

Whenever I hear people talking about the dating scene these days, it seems that so many people meet their significant others though online dating sites or other online activities. For someone my age, this system can be hard to understand.

Except that I met my wife this way as well.

Kind of.

Back in the early Late 1970's and  early 1980's there wasn't an internet to speak of, at least not like what we think of these days. But we did have computers. I know, hard to believe that dinosaurs coexisted with computers. Just a few days after I graduated, I attended the Urbana missions conference. Included with our conference admission was a job search through and organization called InterCristo. InterCristo was an organization that did computer matches of people looking to work in Christian ministry with organizations looking for workers. (InterCristo has since been acquired by Salem Web Network which runs the Christianjobs.com website.)

What was nice about this is that many of the organizations in out InterCristo report had booths at the conference, so that we could meet with representatives of different organizations. One of the organizations on the list was called Emmanuel International. I talked with some of their reps at the site. A few weeks later, someone from that organization was in Massachusetts, so I went to chat with them more. I applied to Emmanuel International and was accepted, so that fall I ended up at their office and training facility in Ontario. While I was hanging out there, a day or so before the training was to begin, Ingrid walked in the door.

(Ingrid's route there was a bit different. She had met representatives of Emmanuel International at a missions conference at a Bible school.)

And the rest is history. I met my wife through a computer matching service—though we never really dated. And they did a good job, because we're still together and like being together. Technology may have changed, but our love remains the same.

Emmanuel International Office in Ontario

Elastic

I reached into my desk to grab a rubber band, and found a little plastic bag with assorted sizes and colors. Most of the elastic bands were red and the same size and a little weary from age.

Red Rubber Bands

I remember buying these red ones during our first year in Bangkok. I was needing to get some rubber bands, and our Thai skills at that point were very limited. I had to look up the term in our phonetic dictionary so I would know how to ask for them. Turns out the word for rubber, yang (ยาง), is used not just for the product itself but for things made from it.

I figured that the best place to buy them would be at a dry goods store not too far from our apartment building. The street just north of us was lined with small shops and the street itself was a bustling market in the evenings..

Market Street Near Our Apartment
Surely There is a Place that Sells Rubber Bands Near Here

When I walked into the store, there appeared to be a discussion among the proprietor and his children as to would would be the one to have to talk with the foreigner. The teenage daughter lost, perhaps because she had the best English skills, and so came to help me. I had no idea how rubber bands were sold, as there were none on display. My experience in the US was that they would be in plastic bags either of the same size or assorted sizes.

I was wrong.

Turns out rubber bands were sold by the kilogram, and I can't imagine how many that would be, but it must be a lot and I only needed a couple. We had learned the word for a tenth of a kilogram in language school, so I figured I would  just ask for that. How many is that? Enough to last us our entire stay in Thailand, so it seems, since we are still using the same stock 11 years later.

Why such high demand for rubber bands? Turns out that everything in Thailand seems to be packaged in plastic bags and the bags are sealed not with twist ties, but with rubber bands. Part of this is due to the fact that rubber is produced locally and there is usually more latex than meets demand, so the price is cheap. The Thai people are very adept at tying plastic bags with rubber bands and they have a technique they use, which is hard to learn from watching because they do it so fast. Later that year we participated in helping package food for flood victims in Bangkok, so we got to try our hand at it (we weren't very adept).

Showing Off my Lack of Skills Tying With Rubber Bands

Rice and Lots of Red Rubber Bands

Even though rubber bands are used extensively to package food, when you shop for rubber bands, you want to make sure you don't ask for "hygienic rubber." Hygienic rubber is used to cover certain parts of the anatomy during certain activities.

As I mentioned before, rubber is produced locally. However, rubber trees are not native to Southeast Asia, though they are planted extensively in the region. Rubber trees, also known as Para Rubber,  (Hevea brasiliensis) are native to the Amazon rain forest. There are already several native trees that go by the name yang (rubber). These are all species of  Dipterocarpus, known in English as dipterocarp trees or resin trees. Dipterocarps have resin that can be used for wood lacquers and waterproofing boats, among other things.

Resin Trees (ยางนา Dipterocarpus alatus). Dipterocarp Trees are among the tallest locally

Dipterocarp Seeds have wings and you can throw them in the air to watch them helicopter

Para rubber trees, on the other hand, are called yang para (ยางพารา). They are grown in plantations, which end up having a tightly closed canopy when they mature. In some parts of Thailand, these are the only shady forests you can find.

Dirt Road Through the Rubber Plantation

The trees are tapped by etching into the bark on one half of the tree trunk. The latex is collected in black plastic cups—it takes about two days for the cup to fill.



With time, the scar from the tapping takes up a good portion of the trunk. The tap is then switched to the other side.



When the cups are full, a chemical is added to make the latex turn firm. The cups are emptied onto the ground for later collection.

Rubber Latex Gel

The latex with the added chemicals has a very strong odor. The smell is particularly strong at the places where farmers sell their latex to others who will haul it to a processing plant. The small reminds me of the odor that comes off trucks that would haul treated sewage from treatment centers to farm fields.

Rubber Latex Collection Point

Growing rubber trees is not a really lucrative business. Many years, the income barely covers expenses. The government is constantly researching new ways to use the latex in order to increase demand and hence the income for rubber farms. Many people, though, are turning their rubber trees into charcoal and planting something else instead.

Turning Trees into Charcoal

Another challenge related to rubber, is what to do with waste rubber bands. At lot of rubber and plastic trash ends up in storms drains that flow to the rivers that then flow to the ocean. I remember being at the coast following a major storm; there was a wall of debris at the high tide level. Much of the debris was organic in nature (logs and stumps, etc.) but what we mostly saw were plastic bags, plastic straws and rubber bands.

Drinking Straws Washed up on the Beach

Rubber and latex are things we tend to take for granted, without realizing what is involved in getting these materials to market in the forms we use everyday. So, next time you grab for a simple rubber band, or slide on a latex glove, give thanks for the farmers that labor so that you night have that simple convenience.

He is risen!

It started out as a disappointing day. We had prepared a nice Easter service for our small church, intending to show a video of the Easter story, which is something unfamiliar to most people here, However, no one ended up coming as the extended family that comprises the church was away from home, but they neglected to tell us. We already knew that our afternoon group would not be meeting due to an illness in the family.

We decided to enjoy the unexpected break by checking out a new coffee shop on the eastern edge of our district. We were taking the back-roads home, when we happened upon some trees with awesome white flowers blooming in the forest.

Later we came upon this very impressive vine.

But the highlight of our trip was right after we turned back onto the highway. The sky seemed to scream out an Easter message.

He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen.
Matthew 28:6-7 (NLT)

I look at those clouds and I imagine the day Jesus will return in all His glory. As the angels said to the disciples:

Men of Galilee,” they said, “why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go!
Acts 1:11 (NLT)

Happy Easter!

Unexpected Reminders of the Past

Last week, I had unexpected reminders of my past that came in the form of a television series and from a sign beside the road.

D'Angelo

Recently, we finished watching a Thai series on Netflix. Full House was a nice series because it is from the old days of television (2014), back when it was possible for people to fall in love without having sex. The show was based on a Korean TV series and was filmed partly in Thailand and partly in Korea. The lead male character was named Mike. As I was looking through the credits, I noticed that the actor who played Mike was Mike D'Angelo. I thought, "with a name like that, he could be from my home town, Wolcott, CT, where D'Angelo is a common name." There is currently even a D'Angelo on the town council there.

Mike seemed to be Thai, however, so I did some research and found out his real name is Pirat Nitipaisalkul (พิรัชต์ นิธิไพศาลกุล) and that he is from Bangkok. So much for Thai stars from my hometown. Mike has since dropped the "D" and now goes by simply Mike Angelo. He has gone on to make shows in China and Hollywood (he speaks Thai, Chinese and English).

Om Aem (Sushar Manaying) and Mike (Mike D. Angelo) in Full House
Sushar is from the Isaan region of Thailand.

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Waterbury

We were driving along a highway in Kalasin Province and as we crossed a bridge, I noticed the sign for the waterway we were crossing. It was an irrigation canal and the word for irrigation in Thai is Chonlaprathan. The first syllable of the word, Chon, is a fancy way of saying water.

An irrigation canal (khlong chonlaprathan) in Kalasin

As I was reflecting on that word, I was reminded of a province where we lived ten years ago, Chonburi, which uses the same first syllable. The "-buri" of Chonburi is an epithet of place names in Thailand with the same meaning as the English "-bury". So, if I translate Chonburi into English I get Chon+buri = water+bury. Waterbury. The name of the city where I was born.

My hometown was a bedroom community for people that worked primarily in Bristol or Waterbury. Even though we lived about 1/2 mile from Bristol, we were Waterbury people, which was about 6 miles away. My father worked in Waterbury, we went to church there and did most of our shopping there. Interestingly, my aunt and uncle and my cousins lived just around the corner, but they were Bristol people. My uncle worked in Bristol and they went to church there and seemed to have more connections there.

There are a lot of D'Angelos in Waterbury, too.

Funny how many years later I end up living in "Waterbury" (Chonburi), Thailand.

Sunset in Chonburi. A city (-buri) with lots of water (Chon-).

Though it has been many years since I have lived in Connecticut, it was fun to get these two reminders of these significant places of my past.

So if a person lives many years, let him rejoice in them all;

Ecclesiastes 11:8a ESV