2024 WORD OF THE YEAR
By Pastor Lemuel Niere
The Oxford English Dictionary announced a couple of weeks ago that the 2024 ‘Word of the Year’ is brain-rot. This was based on a public vote involving more than 37,000 people. The dictionary defines brain-rot as “the supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as the result of overconsumption of material (particularly online content) considered to be trivial or unchallenging. Also: "something characterised as likely to lead to such deterioration.”
Are there ways to avoid brain-rot? Yes, many psychologists have suggested ways to avoid or combat brain-rot—and reading books appears on the top list! One such suggestion says, “Read books instead of mindlessly scrolling. Don’t keep consuming brain-rot. Bring your thoughts from your head into the physical space. This will allow your mind to engage in a healthier way.”
And what a better book to prioritize reading and studying this year 2025 than the Bible! It elevates one’s mental capacities on heavenly themes.
In maintaining your life in God, here is wise counsel from Jude 1:20-23:
“But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keeping yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. And on some have compassion, making a distinction; but others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire, hating even the garment defiled by the flesh.”
Maybe you know of a family member or a fellow believer who is caught up in sinful lifestyles that surely will destroy his or her life. Jude tells us what our attitude should be towards such individuals who get caught up in brain-rotting behaviors. We must act decisively when we see this happen to someone we love.
In verse 23 especially, Jude tells us that “others save with fear…” The word “save” (sodzo in Greek) calls for immediate, fast, and continuous action. This is not a mild suggestion but a strong command to act immediately when we see a family member or a fellow believer compromising his or her walk with the Lord.
Jude 1:23 could be translated: “Because of the alarmingly dangerous state that some believers are in, I urge you to take immediate and fast-acting measures to see them delivered and rescued. And if they don’t quickly respond, don’t stop! You need to keep up your sense of urgency until you are convinced that they are rescued from their precarious situation…”
This verse places a heavy responsibility on us to do whatever we can to help a family member or a church member back to a place of safety. And for us individually, too.
