In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.     Matthew 6:9 NKJV

As a child, I had a smart mouth.  So many times an adult authority figure in my life, had cause to say, “you better watch your mouth.”  Now as a kid with a smart mouth, I really wanted to respond, “how can I watch my mouth unless I am in front of a mirror.”  But I knew better.  I was also told to watch my mouth any time I took the Lord’s name in vain.  My mother considered it taking the Lord’s name in vain when I said things like, “Oh my God”, or “Oh my Lord”, or “for Christ’s sake” and I really got fussed at the first time I said, “I swear to God”.  That was a big no-no in our household.

The Bible cautions us against speaking in ways that displease God.  The third of the Ten Commandments says, “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.”

Taking God’s name in vain is not something that should be taken lightly, but sadly in this country it has become as common as breathing.  You see it in movie scripts.  People take God’s name in vain just as easily as they discuss the weather.  It has become accepted and common place.  Is it any wonder God is not blessing our nation?  I mean seriously, take a minute to think about it.

Sadly, we have come to a point in society where it is considered totally acceptable.  Now some of you are going to balk at this, but think about it for a minute.  When we, and I am as guilty of this as the next person, say something like “Oh my Lord”, are we keeping God’s name holy?  Are we being reverent?  And what about “Oh my God!”?  That phrase has become so common place that in texting and social media posts it has it’s own abbreviation, OMG.

Psalm 99:1-3 tells us that “The Lord reigns, let the nations tremble; he sits enthroned between the cherubim, let the earth shake.  Great is the Lord in Zion; He is exalted over all the nations.  Let them praise your great and awesome name-He is holy”.  When you open your mouth and use God’s name like some common slang term, remember who you are talking about.  You are talking about the Lord God Almighty.  You are talking about the King of Kings.  You are talking about the God who loved you enough to send His one and only son to die for you (John 3:16).  This is the God that owes you nothing.  We deserve none of the good things He has given us.

So I ask you one question today.  Is your vocabulary so limited that you can’t talk without taking God’s name in vain?  Is your vocabulary so limited that you can’t talk without using cuss words?  Think about this before you open your mouth.  Think about this before you start typing away on social media.

Your ability to talk is God given.  It’s not a right as many would say, but it’s a privilege.  God can take away your voice or your ability to speak in the blink of an eye.  I sometimes wonder why He allows us to go on and on and dig our holes deeper and deeper.  I wonder how He must hurt when we use His name in meaningless conversations or worse yet in anger.

When I worked in law enforcement, sadly, because so many used cuss words and took God’s name in vain, it was common place and I will admit that I am as guilty as the next.  I was blessed to be moved into an area where law enforcement officials were Christians and spoke as Christians.  This helped me a great deal because in this area they spoke professionally.  They didn’t need a bunch of empty words to carry on a conversation. It was not only very pleasant, but it gave them a much more polished and professional appearance.

“Do not bring shame on the name of your God by using it to swear falsely.  I am the Lord.”  Leviticus 19:12.

As Christians, we should be offended by foul language.  But I am amazed at the person that will invite you to church or ask you to buy tickets for a church fundraiser and then a week later you hear them out in public cussing up a blue streak.  Seriously?  So which is it?  Sitting on the fence, being a Lukewarm Christian, well that’s a whole other blog, but the point I am trying to make is that your language can completely destroy your witness.

So as we go into the weekend, let me strongly encourage you like my momma used to encourage me, “watch your mouth”.  Think very carefully before the mouth overflows.  Most importantly, ask this question before you speak, “is what I am about to say going to be pleasing to God?”  You see my former pastor used to say that when we get to heaven we will spend all our time praising God so we should start while we are here on earth and get lots of practice.  Remember practice makes perfect, why not start talking the right way today!

Have a great weekend!