the greatest thing since sliced bread

While listening to the radio a few weeks ago, I started thinking about clichés. This song
was full of them…so much so that I was able to anticipate the next line of a verse having never even heard the song before. So, I started to wonder if anyone has any original ways of expressing themselves anymore.

The thing about clichés is that they start out as individual, unique thoughts. But through the years, they get so overused to the point that they are trite. Kind of like that song that you start out absolutely loving but eventually hate due to the massive radio-overkill.

Part of the appeal of the cliché is that it’s easy. It’s comfortable, and pretty much understood universally. Even as Christians, we are tempted to throw out spiritual truths in the form of snazzy one-liners and a one-size-fits all answer for each issue. If someone is struggling, we have our “go-to” verses to use as a type of spiritual band-aid. Nothing is inherently wrong with encouraging each other with Scripture. However, sometimes people just need someone to listen and say, “You know, that does suck”. We all know Jeremiah 29:11, Romans 8:28, and Proverbs 3:5-6. Sometimes we just need to grieve, cry, and feel the raw emotions of our situation before our hearts are ready to receive the biblical encouragement that we already know in our heads. I pray that we have the discernment to know when we need to speak truth into people’s lives and when we just need to listen to them and pray.

The next time you are tempted to use a cliché, remember this: Old habits die hard, but there is no time like the present to turn over a new leaf J