18 Aug, 2011

Tip of the Tongue

Tongue Surgery
Teen Has Tongue Surgically Lengthened to Speak Korean
 
A 19-year-old British student took her love for the Korean culture to new heights when she had her tongue surgically lengthened so she could speak the language better, the Telegraph reported.  Rhiannon Brooksbank–Jones underwent a procedure called a lingual frenectomy, which involves a surgeon either using a scalpel or a laser to remove the frenulum – the band of tissue that connects that tongue to the floor of the mouth.
 
The procedure, often performed on people who have an unusually thick, large or tight frenulum, only takes about 15 minutes and involves very little recovery time.  Rhiannon said she is pleased with the results, and now that her tongue is 1 centimeter longer, she said she is able to say words that were impossible before.
"The surgical procedure was my only option. My pronunciation was very 'foreign', but now I can speak with a native Korean accent," she said.

Story and photo courtesy of foxnews.com

God’s Story: 1 Corinthians 13
 If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.  And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

What does today’s God’s Story teach us?
No matter what language we speak, the most important language is love – God’s love.  We can say the most beautiful things, but if our love isn’t showing through, or what we do isn’t motivated by love, it’s actually like an ugly clanging sound in the ears to whom we speak, and especially to God.

How can we connect today’s story, God’s Story scripture, and our story to others?
When someone speaks to you and it’s not in an attitude of love can you tell?  Do you think others can tell when you aren’t loving to them?  Our actions may speak louder than words, but our words do impact.  

Today, every time before you speak, think about your tone, your voice, your words.  Are you being loving and kind?  What are others hearing you say – is it a clanging cymbal?     

You don’t have to go to extreme medical procedures to begin speaking with love.  Pray and ask God to help you love others as you share your story and God’s story with friends.  His love can be right on the tip of your tongue!

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