The Professor And The Madman

By Rosella Shishido, Communications Ministry Coordinator

If you love words and if you’re impressed by people’s dedication and hard work, you just might appreciate The Professor and the Madman, a movie set in Oxford, England about the beginnings of something most of us may have taken for granted—the Oxford English Dictionary.

Now before you even say “Nerd!” or “Uhm, not my kind of movie,” I can assure you that it’s a beautifully crafted movie with affecting performances by the lead actors. And if you’re curious about the movie title, it is in reference to the brilliant linguist (Sir James Murray) who led the dictionary project, and the schizophrenic man (Dr. William C. Minor) incarcerated for murder who contributed the most to the project’s crowd-sourcing efforts.

But what impressed me the most about this true story was the relentless effort and dedication that went into the massive endeavor of compiling, researching, and editing hundreds of thousands of words in spite of the setbacks, the difficulty of the project itself, and the criticisms that Sir James Murray and his team faced.

It wasn’t easy but ...

They persevered ...

Because ...

They believed that their goal was much bigger than all the challenges.

Perhaps you’re in a tough spot right now where nothing seems to be going right. You made the decision to believe in Jesus, follow Him, and carry out what He has asked you to do. But somehow you’re getting criticisms instead of praises, discouragement instead of cheers, silence instead of applause.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before Him, He endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” (Hebrews 12:1-3)

It took more than 70 years for the first edition of the full volume of the Oxford English Dictionary to be completed and published in 1928. Yes, more than 70 years! Kudos to all the editors, including those before Sir James Murray, but it was Murray and his team who saw it through to its completion. It’s not easy to persevere like that.

If they were able to persevere, so can we! The apostle Paul was confident that, although hard, this is doable for Christians because he gave this charge in 1 Corinthians 15:58: “Stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”

Yes, hardship, opposition, and difficult times are inevitable, but let’s endure, persevere, and fix our eyes on Jesus. Let’s pray expectantly for His help and the strength we need to refuse throwing in the towel.

Prayer: Help me, Lord Jesus, to be steadfast and to keep pressing on even when circumstances prove to be very hard. Help me to look at the tough times as stepping stones and opportunities to grow in my faith in You. Please help me to persevere. I love You, and I choose to trust in You. Amen