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| “…blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord…” |
| —Jeremiah 17:7a |
Two foreign phrases have become a part of the vernacular of the Millennial generation in America. From these younger people, the phrases have spread to the older generations.
The first phrase, taken from Hispanic culture, includes the words: “no problem.” This phrase has replaced the more polite and infinitely more preferred—in my opinion—“you’re welcome.”
The phrase “no problem” is the Anglicized translation of the common Hispanic response to “gracias” (thank you), which is “de nada.” “De nada” literally translates “of nothing.” So, “no problem” actually has a different bite to it than the nuance of the South American Spanish phrase. Whereas, “de nada” is typically spoken with a bowed head of self-deprecatoon, “no problem” has a more dismissive tone that smacks, at least a little, of arrogance.
In response to “thank you,” I much prefer the infinitely more polite “you’re welcome.”
The second phrase comes from Australia. It also is used in response to “thank you.” It’s the phrase “no worries.”
When spoken outside the very specific context of the rich and vibrant Australian culture, such as when the phrase is spoken here in America, the flippancy of its tone has a similar negative arrogance as the phrase “no problem.” Yet somehow, the jocularity of “no worries” does not seem quite as pompous nor dismissive to me as “no problem.”
I still much prefer the phrase “you’re welcome” as a more polite response to the phrase “thank you.”
But, have the Australians inadvertently stumbled on a spiritual truth? Even though their culture—based heavily on the laid back “tomorrow’s another day” attitude of the south Pacific mixed in with the banished prisoner “I don’t care” attitude of their forebears—has spawned the relaxed attitude behind the phrase “no worries,” is this an attitude that followers of Jesus should cultivate?
The Prophet Jeremiah certainly recorded such words directly from God in Jeremiah 17:7-8:
“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him.
They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”
Let us begin this day by leaving our worries at the feet of Jesus. If He will care for us in the midst of a spiritual drought, He will care for us at all times.
We can surely face whatever this day brings and respond: “no worries.”
