I was at the bowling alley and saw a young man (late teens, early 20s) with a tattoo on the back of his neck. It was an American Flag, upside down.
Now, I’m a fan of body art. You won’t find me picketing a tattoo parlor. So the issue was not, in the least, the tattoo. It was the tattoo that he had chosen and why.
The upside down flag had me curious. So I went up to this young man and asked, “Excuse me, why did you get a tattoo of an upside down American flag?”
His answer was simple, “Freedom of expression, man. Freedom of expression.”
Well…I’m a huge believer of that Amendment, too.
But I was still curious. So I went on, “Totally agree. But, do you know what an upside down American flag symbolizes?”
He had a blank look on his face.
“No.”
“It signals that you are in distress. Are you in distress? Do you need help?”
And our conversation went from there.
I started today’s post with this encounter to show you that sometimes we say or do things without perhaps really thinking them through…
“Like, OMG, Brooke! You are so right.”
Wait. That’s actually what I am talking specifically about today.
Now, if you are not a believer, fond of, follower, or fan of God, today’s blog posting won’t make much sense to you. But to those of us that are—This is for you.
O.M.G. does not stand for … Oh my gosh. Oh em gee. Oh my goodness. Or even Oh Messy Golly!
Even if it’s not how you intend it to be understood, to the world, OMG implies that you are stating with great expression,
That may not be how you intend it, but that will be how people interpret it.
And we all know that God’s first and middle names are not Oh My.
Just like we know God’s last name is not Dammit.
So, unless you’re paying homage to the Big Man up There, perhaps pause and think before you speak.
It only takes moments to do…
Psalm 145 1-2
I will praise you, my God and King, and bless your name each day and forever.
(c. Living Bible)
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https://and2makescrazy.wordpress.com/2013/09/25/i-dont-love-jesus-can-we-still-be-friends/
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This is one of my biggest pet peeves! I cringe every time!!! My daughter had the courage to tell a good friend to refrain from using O-M-G in all it’s forms. She was nervous but was glad that this friend truly tries to stop saying it. Great post!
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tell your daughter that i was super nervous to share this post. i’ve had it written for a while 😉 hopefully approached with respect and love, at least we can be heard. whether people agree, i am not sure. but i know for me, sometimes it’s really great to be reminded that i, too, need to think before i speak. xo to you from az! b
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Reblogged this on missiontomission.
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I totally agree with you about OMG! I don’t use it and it is offensive to me just as much as if you said the whole thing.
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my daughter’s at the age now where it is everywhere she goes and on every show she watches. it’s even on clothes. this is a tough one to teach little ones since they only hear the letters and not the words behind them, so we’ve had several conversations about it to date. hopefully it sinks in 🙂
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