"....and as for me, my little brain isn't very bright."

I'm  so confused. I've always believed I knew the definition of the four letter word, HACK. And, although I have been aware that there have always been several meanings for the word, apparently I am way off-base, and for all intents and purposes, totally lacking in modern word knowledge.
Used as a verb, to HACK, has always meant to cut and chop coarsely. As is, "I hacked up a chicken and, by golly, I intend to cook it."
As a noun, HACK is a word that describes a taxi operator. As in, "I hailed a cab and the hack took me on one wild  and crazy ride."
But, now it has even more meanings, most of which, confuse the heck out of me.
I can visit a website for craftsy-type persons and learn all kinds of HACKS that will make my life simpler. For example, I just saw a fast-forward video of how to create a fire-pit in approximately one and half minutes. (You and I know it would take much longer, hours at the least, and God only knows how it would look upon completion.) So, this kind of HACK is supposed to be good.
Then, the news is now full of bad folks who HACK. We have Soviets who HACK away at our government officials and their email at an alarming rate. Hackers HACK into our private email and steal data and God forbid our ***-**-****s. They know who we are, what we do, what we buy and where we live. I searched and found several websites dedicated to improve ones hacking skills. It must be fairly easy to learn how to HACK.
There may be other meanings of HACK. Perhaps if I learn how to HACK, I can discover them on the Internet.

Lord of all of us, good folks and bad. Show us how to use our skills to do your will and lead us to make this world a better place where we can live in community with others. Remind us to be less self-absorbed and selfish. Show us how to make peace.