The Bullgrinder

Warn them before God against quarreling about words;

it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen.

2nd Timothy 2:14

I absolutely HATE committee meetings!  I know, I know - in many ways, they are a necessary evil, but my experience has been one of listening to a whole lot of words, but not getting much done.  The very definition of the word "committee" indicates that you are dealing with a group of people who are gathered to perform a certain task or function.  Most committees I have ever been on usually perform just one task:  talk (and talk and talk and talk).  I'm not much with jumping right in on the conversation.  Most of the time, you will find me doodling on a pad of paper while wishing I was somewhere else.

Bruce McIver, author of the book, Stories I Couldn't Tell While I was a Pastor, tells the tale of receiving an "ingenious little wooden gadget" that his father made for him.  His dad called it a "bullgrinder."  There was a little wooden handle that, when turned, caused two small strips of wood to slide back and forth in grooves without ever touching.  The inscription on the back of this unique gift?  "Bullgrinder.  Use when they talk to much."  Pastor McIver mused, "Throughout the years as I sat through tedious committee meetings or listened to rambling, boring monologues, I turned that little handle idly round and round--grinding the 'bull'."

I love it that Paul warns Timothy that too many words "ruin" the listener. There are times when 18 opinions on the same subject prove to be far too much to process.  What's the solution for the problem?  I have no clue!  But I think I just might ask my woodworking pastor friend to craft me my own bullgrinder (and perhaps one for himself as well!). 

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