Half and half

I love learning foreign languages. They are interesting because they can present you with a different way of thinking about things. We use language to form thought, and so in some ways we are limited in our thinking by our linguistic capacity. Sure, we can think of things that we aren't able to explain with words, but for the most part we think with words. This is an amazing gift, it's something that sets us apart from the animals and makes us special, but it can also be limiting.

Memorizing lists of words and grammar structures is so different from actually communicating with someone in a foreign language. Especially if they don't understand your native language at all; because it means its entirely up to you to make yourself understood. My new neighbors are Hispanic, and the mother of the family next door only speaks Spanish, she doesn't really understand English at all. Which made having dinner with them an interesting experience. It takes patience to communicate when you only know half the language, a lot of patience and other forms of communication, like gestures and facial expressions. Eventually we make ourselves understood, but sometimes I am left feeling that I really only got half of her meaning.

Other times I have spoken with someone who does speak my language, but only about as well as I speak theirs. This is the case with the father of the family next door. I went to ask him for help with a minor plumbing problem. Did you ever learn the word for pipe or plumbing in your foreign language class? I didn't. Our conversations are half and half, half English half Spanish, and I think we understand each other. But sometimes, I still feel like I'm missing something.

I wonder if this is how God feels about us. He is trying to tell us something, but we don't understand. He is the one who has to translate His thinking and truth into our humble language. He can't use any other language, because this one is the only one we have. So he speaks slowly, carefully. He presents the same message in different ways at different times. He uses more than words; gestures, actions, signs in nature. Yet his speech to us, or at least what we understand of it, is like my simple Spanish when speaking with my neighbor. There's so much more I want to say, but since she can't understand English, our conversation is limited. But we don't stop trying, and the more we communicate, the easier it becomes.

Sometimes I feel like I only understand God halfway, like I'm still just learning the language and there's so much more there for me to see. I have to learn to listen before I can hear. Other times I feel like we're speaking half-and-half, like I am finally breaking into His language and getting the bigger, fuller picture that he intended, yet some of the words are still lost in translation.

It is a rewarding experience to learn a language well enough to carry on intelligent conversation with another speaker. You not only learn new words, but a new way of thinking, of communicating, of interacting with others. Let us not forget that even though we're made in His image, we don't speak God's language. At least, not yet. We're learners trying to flip through the vocabulary book and really catch the essence of the word.

I have found that, when communicating with a non-English speaker, they are usually kind and patient. They work with you because they know you are trying. God is this way. Getting to know God is like learning a new language. It is a never-ending process, and as non-native speakers, we'll never be fluent, never stop speaking with an accent. But we can get closer and closer, and the beautiful thing is that God draws closer to us. He tries to lay things out on our level, and then lift us up to the next. Right now when I pray I feel like I'm speaking half-and-half, I'm on my way, but I'm not there yet.