What Happened To Our English Language?
I suddenly became aware (Was it a couple of years ago?) that I no longer heard anyone (well almost no one) using the verb "saw." I was absolutely shocked when I realized that from skid row to the boardroom, "I seen" had become the new English. What happened to the English rule that seen needs an auxiliary verb (a helping verb), have or had, to accompany it? Ex: I have/had seen...We have/had seen...They have/had seen. "Saw" stands alone. Ex: I saw...We saw...They saw.
Where are the teachers, and who sets out language standards now? Have we lost our way in how to speak and write proper and formal English as we have lost our way as a nation in so many other areas?
Yes, I am a writer and an author, and I learned standardized English from good teachers, which included my paternal grandmother, when teachers were true educators and were not afraid to teach and to correct their students. As hard as we try, we all make mistakes from time to time in our writing and speaking, but a mistake is just that...a mistake. What I am concerned about is whether we are even aware that there is a formal and standardized language called English...setting aside all of the dialects and slangs and colloquialisms that we use in conversational or informal language.
I am almost frightened when I discern that many have no idea when to use (their, a possessive pronoun) or (there, direction/position) or(they're, a pronoun plus a verb= they are). Many struggle with "your" and "you're." Your is a possessive pronoun...Ex: your coat, your money, your views. You're is a pronoun plus a verb=you are...Ex: You're welcome...You're okay...You're beautiful. Of course, there are so many other errors that seem to go unnoticed. The shortcuts used on social media have just served to compound this problem. How can we help our children and grandchildren with their academic achievements when we haven't mastered our own language in the 21st century?
This matter is noteworthy because if we are consistently careless in how we present ourselves publicly then there is cause for concern as to possible other sloppy areas in our lives. And God help foreigners trying to learn our language which is becoming a contradiction of itself.
It appears that the people who have so much to say are so often the ones who make numerous mistakes. It would be such a blessing if we would all strive to be a little more careful about our writing by making fewer mistakes. When so many words are misspelled or left out, it is difficult to fully understand what is being said. Just take a minute and double check. It's worth the effort, causes you to be taken more seriously, and allows God to be glorified through His children.
Recently, I realized that the Spirit of God was grieving inside of me because I had grown weary of "disturbing" people about this need for improvement because I have been doing it for thirty years, especially among the Body of Christ as it was assigned to me. He informed me years ago that many of God's vessels, and subsequently, many of God's messages were not being received because of haphazardness, and it still appears to be the case today.
Since language is our primary tool for communicating, surely we can request an anointing to help us in this very crucial area, whether we speak English, Spanish, French, Arabic, Dutch or Indonesian.
Thank you and bless you for even considering these thoughts.
