Cheryl and I recently went out to eat at a sustainable farm-to-table kind of restaurant, where they organically grow much of their own food on the property and harvest the meat nearby. I had >

“Korean Pork: Pan seared pork belly and charred broccolini Korean fried rice, avocado relish, cilantro, served with the pickling of watermelon rind and a sunny side duck egg.”

And Cheryl had >

“Guinea Hen: Wood grilled Guinea Hen breast, summer crisp carioca lettuce, micro-shungiku, Tokyo Bekana, pickled grapes, basil infused oil and & champagne vinaigrette.”

It was good. No, delicious. Uuhmm? Truly mouth-watering!?!? Wait – I’ve got it: what a flavorful and pleasant entree of surprising friendship between the delicacy of ordinary farm animals and your not so run-of-the-mill garden fare. Yes . . . that’s what I mean to say!

Synonym buns – they’re irresistible!

What is a synonym bun, you ask? It is a collection of words at your disposal to describe what you see, hear, taste, smell, feel, or imagine. It is a tasteful way of saying the same thing without using the same word. It is a delicious and satisfying way of expressing yourself in a sentence or paragraph that uses a variety of words at the appropriate time without dulling the story or, over-expressing yourself too early that you leave no room for an exclamation.

Again, “What are synonym buns?” They are a carousel of choice words that swirl around offering their options for expression. Have you ever wondered why we refuse to stagnate with only one word to describe a sunset? “That is a beautiful sunset,” we remark. But who in there right mind would settle for beautiful? What about:

What does it say about us that we cannot find enough words to describe the world we live in? And furthermore, why do we feel the need to use a variety of words and phrases to express ourselves? Here are my thoughts.

We feast on synonym buns because:

1. We are finite in our ability to explain the infinite.

Have you ever said, or heard said, “. . . words can’t express how I feel.” This is because we live in a world that is infinitely beyond human expression. When a baby is born into the family and you attempt to describe the joy that you feel, you are expressing something that cannot be quantified. You reach for a synonym bun and do better. But even then, words fail us.

       2. We want to be known and understood.

This is our frustration when we are trying to say what we mean, but the word does not come. True, some have a high vocabulary threshold. But even the most versed in synonym bun-ology has her limits. We come into this world as infants and quickly learn to point, cry, reach for, move toward – for what we can’t say with words. Then, mouth childishly the syllables one by one. Little by little, we add another word that means the same thing, almost. It’s coming naturally now . . . our sentences have multiple words to inform the listening ear of what we are thinking and feeling. Why? It is incumbent, no, emphatically urgent that you know exactly what I am thinking and feeling. So, we reach and reach for more synonym buns.

And this finally says something about who we are as humans.

      3. We want to know and be known by the Ultimate Synonym Bun!

Consider that Jesus is the “Word”, the very thoughts of who the all-knowing God is – told out in human story form (John 1:1).

Consider that Jesus alone has infinite knowledge of all word-expression that explains what every thought and feeling a human can possess (John 2:25).

Consider that the world cannot contain all the books that could be written about Jesus (John 21:25).

The reason why every language in the world has multiple words and phrases to say the same thing, is because the heart is restless for communion, fellowship, conversation, friendship, intimacy, knowledge . . . love? . . . yes, I think that’s it: love that is unhindered, unbridled, open-handedly, unobstructedly, effortlessly, lavishly and abundantly expressed and received without reservation or embarrassment.

Recommendation: get a good cup of coffee and feast on the most delish synonym bun there is:

“O taste and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34:8).