Musings from the Ozone

Re-new. Re-do. Re-make. Re-model. Re-work.  All of the words, without the 're' and by themselves make sense but why add the 're' in front of the word?  What makes it become different from the word itself?  Isn't 'new' clear enough as a word by itself?  When we begin with the word new, and add the 're' on the front of it, we have more than changed its meaning.   The dictionary says it means to make something effective for an additional period.  It means to restore or replenish, such as to renew a stock. To remodel, one would have to do over some part of a something, such as doing over a house, or project.  My take on the addition of re- is that one has to do something over again, even though it had already been created once. 

Years ago, we semi-renovated our house. ( I say semi- because the cost was not exorbitant.) The fact is, renovation is just changing things that already were in place.  One could work in a kitchen built in the 1930's, but would they really want to live with the old refrigerators or stoves?  What we could live with is not necessarily the way we would want to live now.  Old houses were built with the newest materials available at the time of their construction.  Now, some 70 + years later, they have become as outdated as an outhouse, or sometimes they are even unsafe.  Changing things in an old home is entirely sensible.  We just have to do over some things  that were already constructed at one time, if only because they have become an eyesore, or cosmetically unappealing.  A house that was constructed even a couple of decades ago, will have some faddish things about it that was quite a popular style at the time.  I am thinking of how outlandish were some of the decorations in our homes from the 70's.  I personally, have always tried to stay on the traditional, or classic type of decorating, because it is cheaper in the long run. One doesn't have to change things around every 5 years.  However, lots of us have been victims of the crazy patterns of days gone by.  We have painted our walls colors that were popular at the time but now pea-green, or chartreuse green are colors that have gone by the way of their names.  Who even knows the names of some of the old color names? 

W e have to also re-invent ourselves at times.  What worked for us at 25 will not always help us at 35 or 45. Hopefully, we have re-vamped our wardrobes to fit the renewal of our bodies.  We will surely have re-placed the old car we drove in the 60's.  Even if we didn't, I know we had to re-fuel it many times.  We would certainly have had to rework or revise the old thing over and over to make it keep up with modern times. 

Life is like that.  Clothes have to be washed and rewashed. Writing an article, will mean that one will write, and re-write. Beds will be made and re-made.  Food is heated and reheated.  Gardens will be planted, and replanted. Walls will be painted and repainted. Houses will be furnished and refurnished. In fact, as many things as we can think of doing, there will come a time for re-do! 

When we live a Christian life, we should not think that we are once saved and always saved.  We have to have a repentance…or a renewal of our walk with the Lord every day.  We read where Apostle Paul said 'I die daily" and although the thought sounds gruesome,  if one has died out to his flesh, it only supposes that they also must resurrect , or be reborn in Christ daily!